Australian cricket star Matthew Hayden believes that playing a pink ball Test match in Australia could reduce the team’s usual home advantage due to the changes in conditions that occur in the evening.
In the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Australia and India will also compete in a day-night Test match. Hayden mentioned that the conditions after sunset might be challenging for the home team as well.
“When you encounter those challenging conditions during the evening, they can be quite tough,” he mentioned.
Hayden thinks that either team could face a sudden drop in batting performance, as has happened before. In the 2020-21 series, India had a terrible time, with the team being severely weakened by Josh Hazlewood’s five-wicket achievement. The visitors were dismissed for just 36 runs—their lowest total ever in a Test match.
“I’d even say that the usual benefit of playing at home in Australia has been reduced significantly. This is because if you find yourself struggling in a particular part of the game, like being at 130 runs for four wickets during the evening, you could quickly find yourself at 150 runs for eight wickets,” he explained.
There’s no chance to naturally dominate a game,” he added.
