KOLKATA: It has taken time, but the Indian team seems to have warmed up to the idea of more day-night Tests. Reluctant for a long time, the BCCI in the past had turned down proposals from the boards of Australia and South Africa to play the longest format under lights. With the Eden Gardens Test set to end India’s wait for one, there are chances that the team will play more such games abroad. India are scheduled to tour New Zealand in February-March in 2020 for three Tests. The next overseas Test assignment will be in Australia towards the end of 2020. The BCCI has already been requested by the boards of both countries to play day-night Tests.
Although an official announcement is still to come, it looks likely that the reply will be in the affirmative. Speaking to the media a day before India’s inaugural daynight Test, Virat Kohli said that his team is ready. “It needs a bit of preparation and once you get a hang of it, there is no problem. You can assign sessions accordingly and plan in advance. I think any change needs to have that much time for it to sink in and eventually we are open to anything.” The captain was quick to add that the travel itinerary has to be drawn accordingly if an away tour involves a day-night Test.
“If it’s the first Test, then obviously before it whatever practice game you play should be in that format. If there are two practice games, one can be played with a red ball and the other one before the Test with a pink ball. If the second or the third Test is a day-night one, I would ideally have a bigger break between the Tests and have a practice game with the pink ball.”
However, Kohli doesn’t foresee or prefer a future where day-night Tests become the norm rather than novelty. “Then you lose out on that nervousness of the first session in the morning. You can bring excitement but can’t plan only in terms of entertaining people. The entertainment of Test cricket lies in the fact that the batsman is trying to survive the first session, the bowlers trying to set him up. If people don’t respond to that, then too bad. So, I’d like to see it as a one-off experience rather than the regular scenario.”
The Bangladesh captain said similar things, while adding that the importance of practice games should be remembered while planning daynight Tests. His team hardly had time to get used to it before or since it was decided that Eden Gardens would stage this one. Because the Indore Test got over in three days, they got two days for practice. Otherwise, one session under lights at the Eden was all that they would have gotten. “There are a lot of things to get used to for a day-night Test,” said Mominul Haque.
“This happened very suddenly and at a time when could not devote as much time to it as we would have liked. But in future, I’m sure attention will be paid to this. Sure it adds excitement, but the matter of preparation should be part of plans as well.”