The newly elected president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Sourav Ganguly, has made it clear that the Indian team will not hesitate in playing Day Night Test matches, and they could play a Pink-ball game as early as next month when they take on Bangladesh in a two-match Test series. Ganguly had a meeting with skipper Virat Kohli, who was not averse to the idea. The BCCI president, now, will discuss the issue with other office-bearers and with the apex council members as well.
The Indian team has always hesitated to play D/N Test games, with the side refusing to play a match in Adelaide on their last tour to Australia. Last year, during West Indies’ tour of India, then BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary wanted the first game at Rajkot to be a Day/Night encounter, but it was vetoed by the Committee of Administrators, as according to them, the cricketers were not as eager. However, Ganguly has advocated pink-ball games, and even brought in D/N Tests in local cricket after taking charge of the Cricket Association of Bengal.
“Let’s see. Before talking to the team management, this needs the approval of the BCCI members. But I always believe that’s the way forward in Test cricket. Games are being played before empty stands,” the BCCI president had said last week.
However, a section believes that the SG Pink ball might not be able to live up to the demands of Day/Night Tests. The ball was not given a positive feedback after it was used in the Duleep Trophy. However, the BCCI has always worked rather closely with the ball manufacturers, and, hence one can expect an improved pink ball in the future.