Head coach Chris Silverwood is in favour of early starts to Test matches in England to make up for lost time due to adverse weather, saying he and his team will have “no complaints” if the change is introduced in the final red-ball fixture against Pakistan, starting here on Friday.
England and Pakistan could only play 134.3 overs across five days in the second Test which was marred by rain and bad light, leading to calls for starting the matches 30 minutes earlier. Currently, all Test matches in England start at 11 am with provision of adding time at the end of the day’s play.
“What is the harm in starting at half-ten? That was mentioned on commentary and in the papers. We have a period we could use at the start of the day, but we lump it all on the end when we know light is probably going to be an issue again,” Silverwood told reporters.
“So to me the earlier start time would be perfectly acceptable. It makes perfect sense. I’ve had no official word it’ll happen. I know there are chats going on around it. There will be no complaints from us if it happens,” he added.
The 45-year-old had suggested red balls of lighter shade and floodlights as possible solutions to overcome bad light.
{{/usCountry}}The 45-year-old had suggested red balls of lighter shade and floodlights as possible solutions to overcome bad light.
{{/usCountry}}“There’s a lot of chat going on about possible solutions. There’s a few things we can look at. A possible change in the colour of ball is one of them. Whether pink is the answer I’m not sure, but could we use a lighter shade of red instead of the real dark reds that bowlers like because they swing more,” Silverwood said.
“Could we get to a stage when floodlights offer a minimum standard of light? I’m not an expert, but could that be achieved? And are light enhancing glasses an option as well? We all want to play as much as possible. That’s what we’re here for,” he added.