da bwin： Steven Smith has aired his concerns about playing a pink ball Test at the Gabba, despite the fact the Brisbane match against Pakistan is locked in while Adelaide Oval’s fixture remains unresolved due to South African hesitance
da bet sport： Daniel Brettig23-May-2016Australia’s captain Steven Smith has aired his concerns about playing a pink-ball Test at the Gabba, despite the fact that the Brisbane match against Pakistan is locked in while Adelaide Oval’s fixture remains unresolved due to South African hesitance.Casting an eye towards the Gabba match against Pakistan next summer, Smith said he expected the faster pitch and subtropical conditions to pose multiple challenges for the competing teams. This is particularly true for batsmen on both sides, as they will have to cope with a ball that is likely to swing and seam even more than it did in Adelaide.Representatives of the PCB were present for the inaugural day-night Test between Australia and New Zealand in Adelaide last summer, and agreed to play the match in Brisbane notwithstanding the markedly different conditions likely to be at play. South Africa, meanwhile, have baulked at a pink-ball match even though Adelaide is Smith’s preferred venue for it.”I think it worked well last year, playing the one Test at Adelaide Oval,” Smith said of the move towards multiple day-night matches. “I personally believe that’s the best place to play a day-night Test match. We’ve got one game at the Gabba this year so it will be interesting to see how that goes. I still think we need plenty of development with the ball.”I think it’s just a little bit different with the ball and the humidity that is quite often around in Brisbane. [It] Could be very difficult for the batters, particularly if there is to be grass left on the wicket so I guess there is only one way to see how it’s going to go and we have an opportunity to do that against Pakistan this year.”It worked well in Adelaide last year. We were [playing on] 2mm of grass away from it being a four-day game instead of a three-day game. I think it’s certainly a place that it can be successful and I’d be happy to play another pink-ball game at Adelaide Oval.”Smith’s mixed feelings about the pink-ball Test reflect those of many players, who agree the spectacle witnessed in Adelaide last year was on a scale worth pursuing while retaining reservations about the ball and the variation in conditions. The concept’s momentum has grown in recent months as other countries become interested; most recently the ECB chairman Colin Graves expressed an eagerness to host day-night Tests in England.”Cricket Australia is keen to get as many pink-ball games in as possible,” Smith said. “You only have to look at the spectacle last year at Adelaide, it was absolutely remarkable the amount of viewers at the game and on television as well so I think it’s certainly a step forward and we have to keep improving as much as we can to make sure that the game can survive. I think it’s a great game of cricket and we have to just continue to get it right as much as possible.”I think the players have to buy into it as well. In the end, we are the ones out there doing the job and it is our job so we have to make sure it’s right for us and we want to win as much as possible and we have to find a way to do that with the pink ball. There was obviously an amazing Test match last year and we were able to get over the line at the end, which I think is the most important thing from my aspect and we have to keep looking at ways to be successful with the pink ball.”
