The gripping day/night Test between Australia and South Africa in Adelaide ended with everyone a winner.
Australia won the match and so avoided the embarrassment of a home whitewash. South Africa, despite the defeat, still won the series 2-1. And the spectators loved the pink-ball spectacle, turning up in huge numbers with the attendance of 125,993 the highest ever for a non-Ashes Test at the Adelaide Oval.
But as BBC pundit and former England captain Michael Vaughan put it: “The real winner was day/night Test cricket. Fantastic spectacle.”
All the evidence from Adelaide is that day/night cricket is here to stay. And the fact that Edgbaston Stadium is set to stage a pulsating and historic occasion next summer when it hosts the first ever floodlit Test in England, against West Indies, starting on August 17 makes this all the more relevant to fans of Test Match Cricket in the UK.
Edgbaston and Warwickshire have always been at the forefront of floodlit cricket, hosting the first county game under lights in 1997 with the then chief executive Dennis Amiss among the earliest and most passionate advocates of the concept of day/nighters.
Amiss was ahead of his time. Day/night cricket was soon embedded in the county calendar and now momentum is gathering towards making it an established part of Test cricket.
The latest converts; the South African team for whom the Adelaide Test was their first day/nighter.
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis revealed the experience had banished any doubts his players harboured about the innovation – and went as far as to suggest that one match in every Test series should be day/night.
“Before this series the questions we had about the pink ball and playing day/night cricket were more sceptical,” he said. “Now we have been through it, not so much. I think there are positive signs.
“I would definitely like to see it in South Africa. It’s great to go around the world and play different conditions and if you can play one Test in each series with pink balls, I think it adds something different to Test cricket.”
Day/night Tests have proved an unqualified success in Australia with the Adelaide Oval, having hosted the inaugural one in 2015, and now another hugely successful one, likely to host one annually.
There have also been calls, led by Aussie spin-bowling legend Shane Warne for the traditional Boxing Day Test in Melbourne to be day/night following the massive success of the Adelaide Test, the Friday-night session of which attracted 1.7million TV viewers.
“I’d love to see a Boxing Day day/night Test,” said Warne said. “It’s a huge hit and the more day/night Test matches the better. They’re great.”
Former Australian captain Greg Chappell added his support. “What we saw in Adelaide was that people have a desire for it,” said Chappell. “It will still be the Boxing Day Test, just at a different time.’’
Warwickshire County Cricket Club chief executive Neil Snowball said: “It’s great that the two day/night Tests in Adelaide both attracted record attendances for non-Ashes Tests at the ground and just shows the potential for day/night Test cricket.
“Here at Edgbaston we are very excited by the prospect of hosting the first day/night Test in England next August. It will be a terrific occasion for the club, the city of Birmingham and the region and early indications are that we could be looking forward to welcoming a record crowd as we saw in Adelaide.”
See England vs West Indies at Edgbaston
England will take on the West Indies next summer when Edgbaston hosts the first ever Day/Night Test Match in the UK. This historic match will mark Edgbaston’s 50th Test Match and tickets for this match are already selling fast.
With prices from £26 for adults and just £6 for Juniors (Under 16s) it’s a match not to be missed.
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