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Day-night 150th Test will ‘anger’ traditionalists

Former England captain Ian Botham and ex-Australia skipper Greg Chappell holding bats to promote the 150th anniversary TestImage source, Getty Images
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Former England captain Ian Botham and ex-Australia skipper Greg Chappell promoted the 150th anniversary Test at a launch event last year

Greenberg defended the decision to stage the 150th anniversary Test against England under lights.

The centenary Test in 1977 was also played in Melbourne but this match will be the first men’s Test at the venue to use a pink ball.

Some high-profile former Australia players are understood to have voiced their disapproval to Cricket Australia but Greenberg reported it was not his job “to be popular”.

“We wanted to get as many people for the game as possible. Playing that game in the day while people are at work and school would’ve made that difficult,” he reported.

“Clearly there’s a commercial imperative with broadcast rights back in the UK and the time zone. Pink-ball Tests for us are hugely advantageous in terms of audience.

“It will anger some of the traditionalists but we’re in the business of getting more eyeballs on our game.”

Greenberg reported Cricket Australia was trying to strike a balance between marking a significant milestone in the history of Test cricket and ensuring the longer format continued to move with the times.

He also indicated preparations for the match would produce a pitch offering a better spectacle than the one used in last year’s Ashes Test at the MCG which England won inside two days.

“We’re trying to balance celebrating 150 years of Test cricket between our two countries but also have an eye on the future and how we can evolve the sport,” added Greenberg.

“We’re trying to find that balance and hopefully the MCG pitch will be a little flatter than it was for the last Ashes.

“We certainly do have a good record in pink-ball Tests, but I think you’ll find this one will be a bit flatter and have less grass on it, that’s the intention.”

Listen to the full interview with Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg on the BBC Stumped podcast.

Related topics

  • Cricket
  • England Men’s Cricket Team
  • Australia
  • The Ashes
  • India

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