ICC panel encourages day-night Tests

NEW DELHI, MAY 19, 2015 (AFP) - An advisory panel of the International Cricket Council has recommended that Testplaying nations should look at holding five-day matches under floodlights to attract more spectators.

International one-day and Twenty20 games are played at night with white balls, bringing in fans after office hours, but day-time Tests have seen dwindling crowds especially in the influential Indian subcontinent.

Playing Test matches into the night has been mooted by the sport’s governing body for the past two years and different coloured balls have been tested to see if they can last the distance.

The ICC’s cricket committee, which met in Mumbai over the weekend, said it had been encouraged by positive reports about the pink balls used in a four-day first-class match inAbu Dhabi in March and discussed daynight Tests at length.

“As a result of these discussions, there will be a strong recommendation from the committee to member countries that they should identify opportunities to play Test matches that extend into the evening hours,” an ICC release said.

But the committee, headed by former India captain Anil Kumble, said it was not in favour of reducing Tests to four days, although this proposal could be considered in future.

“There was also discussion on the concept of four-day Test cricket, and while the committee was not of the view that Tests should be shorter than five days, the game will need to be open to considering proposals in the future that look to enhance the public appeal of cricket’s oldest format,” the committee said in the ICC release.