Cricket Balls : Paint me Pink

Plenty of Twenty20

Okay, I’ll make it official; these are some exciting times for us cricket fanciers. And we have those mavericks to thank, the guys who make up the England and the Wales Cricket board (ECB), for dreaming up the T20 format. The shortest and modernistic version of cricket, by design, makes up for quite a sporting spectacle – just twenty overs a side, meaning the batsmen have the license to go berserk, attack everything and let restrain take the back seat (or as the popular phrase goes – throw caution to the winds!). Its short and snazzy; and we love it, because If ever Cricket was a batsman’s game, it is now. And there’s more, Who knows?.. We might have cricket in Olympics too!

For once, I’ll not talk about the IPL et al and how T20 has transformed into the cash cow of cricket; from YouTube to multiplexes, everybody wants a piece of it. We’ve all seen and been a part of numerous debates as to the morality of profit in this regard. This is not in the ambit of this column. Instead, let’s just focus the real problem – Test Cricket is dying out. Cricket has evolved more than once in history to keep pace with our changing requirements of the game. Case in point – the introduction One Day Internationals in 70’s and the early 80’s, first limited to 60 overs a side and then to the present day regulation of 50. In light of such precedents, aficionados are starting to fear that this is another phase in its evolution, and that the kind of hit the T20 format is, well, the days of Tests may well be coming to an end.

Will be a treat, wont it?

It’s said that Test matches are for cricket traditionalists, true admirers of cricketing skills who get a chance to see more of their favourite players, teams and just pure “unadulterated” cricket; Traditionalists, who still do exist notwithstanding the fact that their numbers are dwindling and those who now realise that it is time to make some fundamental changes to the concept to ensure that the best of it survives. To that effect, the world’s premier cricket authority – the ICC is starting to make efforts (rather frantically too!), and topping the “list” as of now are the introduction of day-night or Twilight matches and the use of the Pink cricket ball.

Old is Gold, New is Pink

The pink ball has already been tried by Cricket Australia and the ECB (“Pink” made its debut in first class cricket in the English County season’s opening match between MCC and County Champions), and the results are, well, mixed. Although Its visibility under floodlights is adequate, better than that in case of the red ball, its condition is quite a concern. The colour does not hold up like it does on the contemporary one and it lasts for only about half as much time. Another big concern is the dew factor which comes into play at night. In the very words of THE legendary West-Indian, Clive Lloyd – “if one side bowls first and other bowls at night it could be with a bar of soap”. Funny description, no matter how accurate, but fact of the matter is – this is quite a problem.

A thing of the future..

There is no telling how long it will be until the tweaks are affected and even if day–night tests are played and the concerns with the pink leather ball are taken care of, it’s hard to comment on the effect it all will have and whether it’ll solve the whole purpose. They‘ll certainly make for a refreshing change for both the players and the audience but change is temporary… and temporary is no good, not for test cricket. After all, the 5 day format is both a patron’s delight and the sport of the elite; we would all love to see it in the pink of its health, puns intended.