The recent experiment with the pink ball in Pakistan domestic cricket saw the players complain about the visibility of the ball under floodlights. The major concern, they said, was the quality of the ball once it got older, as it didn't hold up well for both batting and fielding.The PCB tested the pink ball in the final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan's premier first-class tournament, played in Karachi this week between United Bank Limited, led by Younis Khan, and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited, captained by Misbah-ul-Haq. No batsman could score a hundred, but the fast bowlers had a more productive stint - they took 27 of the 34 wickets, with Bilawal Bhatti finishing with match figures of 11 for 95, including 8 for 56 in the third innings of the match.The ball used in the match was not the up-to-date version of the Kookaburra, which is a more workable ball for day-night Tests, and was used in the first ever day-night Test between Australia and New Zealand last month.
Here's what the Pakistani players said about the use of the pink ball in the QEA final:
Azhar Ali, Pakistan ODI captain and SNGPL middle-order batsman
"I am not fully comfortable yet but I'm open to more experiments in future. It was a completely new experience for us but overall it went well with some concerns in visibility. I feel with the cleaner environment, like we saw in Australia, it would be great as in winters here it's more hazy."There was basically some difficulty in the visibility after sunset but it was better with the ball being new. However, as soon as the ball got older, we found it difficult to see it. It also swung more than usual in the night.So as soon it's used the floodlights, especially during dusk, you really have to focus hard. As a fielder it's hard to see the ball from square of the wicket and sometimes it's a complete miss. Taking high catches was the other issue, as the older ball gets blurrier.
