I posted last November about an MCC trial during 2008 to use pink cricket balls instead of white balls with a view to implementing this into international one day cricket. Their trial started on Monday, and Tuesday morning on the BBC news the sports reporter talked about it as he was part of the first trial. Looking at the ball which was in the studio (not sure how many overs it was used for), and what the reporter says, it sounds like it was a decent trial. The pink lacquer doesn’t get dark like the white ball, and if it rubs off at all, the white underneath can be seen and it still remains quite visible.

From first impressions, it seems like pink cricket balls could well be the way forward, but we will have to see how the ball responds under lights and most importantly for its success, if the TV cameras can pick it up ok. It was the TV cameras not being able to pick up a yellow ball which condemned that idea, but with pink being not that far in the colour family from red this should be better.

If the manufacturers and shops could get a few of these manufactured I’m sure there would be plenty of people looking to buy them and give them a go themselves!