4th Test Day 4: Bad Light Laws Create Frustrating Day

On a day that should have either shown just what kind of fight the Australian batsmen had in them after such a long season of disappointment, or been a day when India completed a fabulous achievement that has escaped them for 70 years, we instead spent the majority of the day looking at a ground where the lights were blazing away highlighting only the ground staff as either a light drizzle or umpires light meters kept play to a minimum. In the modern age of cricket, it seemed a very strange set of circumstances.

I was not at the S.C.G. today but was not so far away that the weather and cloud cover was so different. Perhaps the light was shallow, but at no stage did it appear to degenerate to a level when cricket could not be played. Now while I understand that international cricket has much faster and more dangerous fast bowlers, there is no way that it was dark enough today that any Grade cricket match would have been held up due to poor light. Nor, to be honest for the light rain that fell. Yes it’s a different level, but it’s also a level where 30,000 people have paid for the privilege of coming to see cricket played. But these are the current standards that are set by the ICC and are regulated by the standing umpires in the match, and that is how the day progressed. Play was unable to start until 1.50pm, and when play was suspended it was 3.40pm, and it stayed that way until stumps was called at 5.30pm. As it turns out neither side is terribly affected in this case. India had already retained the trophy and only had to draw this match to win their first ever series in Australia, and Australia was already no chance of being able to force a victory which could have changed that occurring. All it did was frustrate the paying public, the viewing public, and the game of cricket in general. 

One of the innovations trying to be brought into cricket is day/night Test matches, albeit with a pink ball rather than a red ball. Still, if these games can go forward with floodlights being used to play cricket through twilight and into the evening, then how is it that cricket cannot continue now under floodlights with a red ball? It isn’t that much different, and yet much of the day was lost because this apparently cannot go ahead. Questions were asked all day, and will no doubt continue into tomorrow, at which point they will no doubt be promptly forgotten and ignored until the next time this same scenario occurs. 

In the short period that play occurred, Australia managed to get to 300 before finally being dismissed, with young left arm wrist spinner Kuldeep taking his first five wicket haul in Tests. He bowls at a lovely slow speed with good flight and a lovely drift on the ball, and he is great to watch. He was not unplayable today, which was proven by the fact that Starc and Hazlewood played him and the other bowlers with relative ease on the flat surface to the tune of 42 runs and 15 overs. They may be having their problems taking Indian wickets, but the bowlers seem to be contributing more to the batting than the top order is. There was no surprise when Kohli enforced the follow on, but at 0/6 the light forced an early tea from which the players never returned. 

One day remains in this series, and at the end of it no matter what occurs on the field India will be celebrating a great victory. For Australia, they bat tomorrow for pride and for their individual Test futures. Hopefully for both teams they get a full day in so all of those questions can be answered.