Australia has been involved in many cricketing frontiers.
We played, hosted, and won the first Test match, against England in 1877.
We also hosted England for the first one-day international in 1971, but lost that.
Eight years later at the WACA, we played the first ODI under lights, against the West Indies.
And in 2005, we did battle with New Zealand in the first Twenty20 International.
Now, 50,660 days after the first Test match, Australia and New Zealand take a brave step forward.
Day-night Test cricket.
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It’s fitting that, shortly after Cricket Australia recognised World Series Cricket statistics, Test matches will enter into the day-night period WSC started.
We may soon have players being picked as ‘day-night specialists’.
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Test cricket is definitely swinging further towards the batsman than the bowler.
Day-night cricket will help wrench it back for the bowlers.
Think of Kane Williamson facing Mitchell Starc shortly before stumps. With the ball being bowled at him at speeds, upwards of 150 kilometres per hour, Williamson has only a moment to check the seam of the ball to see which way it’s swinging.
With the pink ball, it’s a lot harder to pick up the seam. This could help re-balance Test cricket.
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I’m sure that the cricketers of old are spinning in their graves.
“In our day, we played cricket before twilight! With a red ball!”
They shouldn’t worry.
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Kids aren’t getting into cricket because they see a Test match on TV.
They get into it because they see the Big Bash.
Fours every over. Big sixes. Glenn Maxwell.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the Big Bash. But Test cricket may suffer because of this.
Kids love stuff that means they can stay up past their bedtime. Until now, that hasn’t been Test cricket.
Now it is.
If David Warner scores a century tonight, the Test cricketers of 2035 will say that the moment for them was this.
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The Boxing Day Test may be under lights text year.
The Ashes may be under lights in 2017-18.
Imagine that. The WACA, the place where international cricket first went under lights, goes out in lights in its final Test in 2017.
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There have been plenty of crazy ideas thrown up now.
Four day Test Matches.
Sixth day T20s to decide draws.
I think that, rather than four-day Tests, they should have a match with one innings each day. Sixth day T20s are stupid.
50 years ago, Day-Night Tests would have been seen as crazy. Now, it’s just a necessary next step.
Cricket is going into the future.
And I can’t wait.Follow @denniscricket_
“I think that, rather than four-day Tests, they should have a match with one innings each day”
it’s not clear what you mean by this…? You mean Test matches should consist of each team having a day in which to bat and get as many runs as possible, i.e. 90 over innings? Sort of like limited overs cricket on a monstrous scale. So what happens when the team is bowled out in 35 overs…everybody goes home for the day and comes back the next day? What a waste of time, when the opposition could easily come out and start their innings immediately.