Cricket’s next avatar

Everything needs to evolve to stay relevant. Thankfully for the sake of Test cricket, the sport’s authorities have realised that before it was too late. The inaugural day-night Test played with luminous pink balls in front of a packed Adelaide Oval last week might not have been a welcome sight for some cricket puritans but it was a timely development that should provide a new lease of life to the longest format of the game. Apart from England, and to some extent Australia, Test cricket – despite its rich 138-year history – was slowly but surely walking towards the path to irrelevance. For years this format has been failing to attract spectators as a result of which cricket boards in many Test-playing nations were losing money. Back in the seventies and eighties One-day Internationals dealt a blow to Tests. With the rise of Twenty20 matches in recent years, it seemed the five-day format was on its way to its grave.
It was clear that something had to be done to save Test cricket. There was a need to repackage it and the easiest thing to do was to have Test matches played under lights. Turns out, it was a gamble worth taking. The Australians took the initiative and hosted their third Test against Trans-Tasmanian rivals New Zealand in Adelaide as a day-night affair. A staggering 123,736 fans watched the match over three days. Millions tuned in on their TV sets all over the world. For the first time in the series bowlers had the upper hand and Australia went on to win the historic trailblazer in thrilling fashion. The Adelaide Test was hailed as a big success by fans, players and cricket chiefs. The authorities in Australia are planning more day-night Tests next year. Pakistan, too, are likely to play a Test under lights at the picturesque Adelaide Oval when they visit Australia next December. They say nothing succeeds like success. Judging from the fact that the first-ever day-night Test was a big hit, one can presume that this new spectacle has a bright future. The day-night Test format should also attract spectators in Asia where interest in the longest format has been dwindling. What happened in South Australia last week was the next step in Test cricket’s evolution. And the early signs look good.