Breaking: Eden Gardens To Host India's First Ever Day-Night Test
Published - 29 Oct 2019, 07:45 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:02 AM
Four years after the world witnessed the first-ever day-night Test, India are finally ready to get a taste of the same. India will play their first-ever day-night Test in the upcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh. India will host Bangladesh for three T20Is and two Tests next month. The second Test at the Eden Gardens will be a day-night affair.
India had approached Bangladesh Cricket Board to play the day-night Test and the visitors finally agreed to it on Tuesday. Interestingly, Bangladesh will also play their first day-night Test. The first-ever pink ball Test was played between Australia and New Zealand in 2015. Since then, the likes of England, West Indies, Pakistan and South Africa have also played Tests under light.
The development comes within a week of Sourav Ganguly taking charge as BCCI’s president. The former India skipper has been a big fan of day-night Tests and has already said that Tests under light is the future.
“It’s a good development. Test cricket needs this push. Me and my team were bent on it and thanks to Virat (Kohli) also, he agreed,” Sourav Ganguly told PTI.
Media reports suggest that there are plans to invite India’s legendary Olympians like Abhinav Bindra, M C Mary Kom and P V Sindhu and felicitate them for their contribution to the country’s Olympic movement during the match.
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Just like Cricket Australia’s annual ‘Pink Test’ (players wear Pink caps) in association with the Jane McGrath Foundation to raise awareness about breast cancer, Ganguly wants the Eden Gardens’ Day-night Test to be an “annual affair”.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh coach Russell Domingo said playing day-night Test against India would be a new experience for both the teams.
“As the coach and some of the players and all the other senior players, we think that it’s a great opportunity,” Domingo said. “I don’t think India have played a pink-ball Test before. We haven’t played a pink-ball Test. It’s a massive occasion at the Eden Gardens.
“It will be a new experience for both the teams. So we are very excited about it. It will be a great occasion under the lights against one of the best team in the world, probably the best team in the world also. So we are really looking forward to the challenge,” he added.
