By IANS
Sydney : Negotiations are underway with scientists to develop an appropriate ball that will be visible to batsmen during night Test cricket and will last 80 overs.
According to a report in The Australian, Cricket Australia (CA) is pushing for night Test cricket and has established a working party to look into the research and development of a suitable night ball.
According to the newspaper, CA chief executive James Sutherland wants Australia to play the first night Test within three years.
Scientists at the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane and the Australian Institute of Sport are experimenting with different white balls, as the traditional red ball is difficult to see under lights, to see which have better properties for the game.
CA general manager of cricket operations Michael Brown told the newspaper: “We have spoken to the Australian Institute of Sport and we have got a working party together to develop a project brief and then approach Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). We are going to set out what we want the ball to do and then work out how to make it. We want to go back to the basics.”
“However, we believe that playing Test cricket at night has to be a positive development for the game. I don’t know how it would affect television revenues, but you can imagine that it would boost attendances and ratings. We’ve got good crowds now but you would think they would only be enhanced,” Brown was quoted as saying.