Proteas pacemen echo day-night concerns

Cricket365
June 1, 2016

South Africa fast bowlers Vernon Philander and Kagiso Rabada are not keen on playing a day-night Test in Australia unless they've had plenty of practice with the pink ball under lights in domestic cricket.

Proteas skipper AB de Villiers has already said the players are not eager to play the game in Adelaide under lights later this year, and the pacemen also feel that it's unfair to ask the Proteas to do so when Australia have significantly more experience.

The Aussies have played Sheffield Shield cricket with the pink ball for a while, and played the first and only day-night Test, against New ZEaland, last year. Philander, for one, doesn't think a single warm up game is enough.

Philander said: "If you are going there, you need to have experimented on the domestic front. We haven't done that so it would be a total blind eye going into it.

"I would like to have experimented before you actually go and do it. You have to try and test the pink ball properly.

"We are all professional players and I think sometimes people think we are quick to adapt to everything. As far as the pink ball is concerned, you are going to need a few games to get used to it.

"There are a lot of rumours of the ball being okay during the day and then at night being a bit difficult for batters."

Rabada was equally wary, but didn't rule it out, adding: "From what I hear, it's not a fair contest between bat and ball and that should be Test cricket.

"I haven't given it much thought but I wouldn't mind playing in it. I've heard good things and I've heard bad things. Perhaps they need to look into it more and perhaps make it a bit more fair.

The positive is that it brings crowds in. They need to find a way to balance the two, so that it's good for cricket and good for publicising the sport.

"You need to find a way to come to a fair conclusion where both parties are happy."