Cricket has traditionally been a game played during the day time, especially during times before floodlight technology was introduced in stadiums.
With technological advances and the introduction of one-day cricket, however, matches have been held during the afternoon and evening since the 1970s.
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In 2015, the first day/night Test match took place between Australia and New Zealand in Adelaide, starting on the same date as the first day/night ODI in 1979. Instead of the usual red ball, a pink ball was used to provide better visibility during the evening and twilight times, when the sky got darker.
A total of 21 men's Tests and 2 women's Tests have taken place with the pink ball till date. It is a gradual development in progress, but it seems that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is not too keen on hosting too many of them.
BCCI secretary Jay Shah explains why India are reluctant to host pink ball Test matches
After the player auction ahead of the Women's Premier Legaue (WPL) season 2 on Saturday, BCCI secretary Jay Shah spent a few minutes interacting with the media. As reported by Times of India, he said,
We will have to increase the amount of interest in the public for the pink-ball Test. If you recall, they ended in two-three days. Everyone wants to watch a Test match lasting four-five days. Once they get more used to it, we will do more pink-ball Tests.
India have played four men's Tests and one women's Test with the pink ball. All four men's Tests ended within three days, with the match against England in Ahmedabad finishing in two. India won three of those matches and lost one, where they were infamously bowled out for 36 against Australia.
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The women's pink-ball Test against Australia in Carrara ended in a draw, with the game lasting all four days. Interestingly, this was also the case with the only other women's pink-ball Test between England and Australia.
By contrast, none of the 21 men's pink-ball Tests have ended in a draw. 10 of them have ended withing three days, with the other 11 going into at least day four, an almost even split. This suggests that there are more factors at play than just the pink ball. Unless more matches are played, it will be difficult to determine what these are from a limited sample.
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