Explained: Team India To Wear Different Jersey In Tests, Here Is Why

Team India’s Test shirt will look different when they take on Australia in the upcoming four-match Test series. The much-anticipated series is scheduled to start on December 17 with the historic day-night affair at the Adelaide Oval, Adelaide. Both the teams are currently engaged in the three-match T20I series.

India are leading the series after winning the first game by 11 runs. The Men in Blue will have a chance to seal the series on Sunday when they take on the hosts in the second game. Earlier, the three-match ODI series finished 2-1 in the favour of Australia.

A different Test jersey:

For the first time in the history of Test cricket, Team India’s Test shirt will feature a large sponsor logo across the front. India A players were seen wearing the new shirt when they took the field against Australia A for the ongoing three-day first-class fixture at Drummoyne Oval, Sydney.

The new look to the shirt is in accordance with the rule introduced by the ICC in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. In June this year, the ICC approved a handful of interim measures designed to help the sport resume during the pandemic, such as the return of non-neutral umpires and banning the use of saliva to polish the ball.

The governing body of the game also decided to change the Test whites to help the cricket boards earn more revenue after facing huge loss due to the pandemic. Consequently, the ICC gave the cricket boards the opportunity to recoup some losses by allowing them to sport sponsors on the front of the shirt. Previously, the teams were only allowed to sport only smaller logos – no bigger than 64.5cm2 (10in2) – on the breast and the sleeve in Tests.

By relaxing its heavily-regulated clothing and equipment policy, the ICC made an additional 206.45cm2 (32in2) area across the front of the shirt and sweaters available for sponsor branding. The likes of England, the West Indies, Pakistan and New Zealand have all displayed the bigger sponsor logos on their shirt fronts.

India, on the other hand, will do it for the first time in the upcoming Test series with a BYJU’s logo displayed across the front of the player’s shirts. Last year, the ICC had also made it mandatory for the teams to sport player names and numbers on the Test shirts.

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