Test Cricket goes Day/Night

[mike carey]

The impenetrable (for Americans) long form game of cricket, the five-day test, has taken a shot in the dark with an experimental day/night game between Australia and New Zealand being played in Adelaide.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/27/sports/cricket/australia-breaks-cricket-tradition-pink-balls-night-test.html

As noted in the article, pre-match ticket sales have been stratospheric, and the first day had the biggest crowd for a cricket game in Adelaide since the early 1930s. Not quite the 50,000, but just under 48,000 - they expect a bigger crowd today.

 

The pink ball was the subject of some mirth in the lead up. Other colours had been canvassed as people tried to work out how to manage to keep the ball easy to see in daylight, twilight (as the lights came on) and after dark. The ball is important, unlike baseball the same ball is used for most of the day, and the fact that it slowly deteriorates over the day and behaves differently is part of the nuanced battle between bowlers and batsmen. The white ball used in other day night games is not suitable as it very quickly becomes gray with use. Cheekily, comment was made that no-one had suggested using blue balls.

 

As it turned out, the pink ball worked very well. On the TV coverage after dark, it was almost luminous and very easy to see. The nervousness of the administrators yesterday morning had turned to enthusiasm by the close of play about 9.30 last night.

[+ poolboy48220]

I didn't understand a word of this.

[+ WmClarke]

Wicked googly!

 

That is the extent of my cricket knowledge. And I'm not 100% sure what it means (see the film, Hope and Glory).

[Kevin Slater]

I didn't understand a word of this.

 

I think it was all commie speak.

 

Kevin Slater