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Pink balls to be trialled in day Tests to maximise playing time

Dailydispatch · 🇿🇦 public South Africa · · 218 words · By Reuters Agency
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What to know about Pink balls to be trialled in day Tests to maximise playing time

Cricket’s Test-playing nations will be able to use pink balls instead of red ones in traditional daytime matches as part of a trial to prevent play being lost due to bad light.

Claims checked 8
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center100%
Right0%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Cricket’s Test-playing nations will be able to use pink balls instead of red ones in traditional daytime matches as part of a trial to prevent play being lost due to bad light.

Why it matters

The International Cricket Council approved the trial at a meeting of its board in Ahmedabad and said it would also undertake research on lighting technology for match officials and venues to “reduce lost play due to poor light”.

Common ground

Bad light often halts play in Test matches for safety reasons, with the red ball being harder for batters to see.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.dailydispatch.co.za/sport/cricket/2026-06-02-pink-balls-to-be-triall…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 8 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 7
info Single Source 1
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Claim 1: “it would also undertake research on lighting technology for match officials and venues to “reduce lost play due to poor light”.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results from June 1, 2026, explicitly state that the ICC will undertake research on lighting technology for match officials and venues to reduce lost play due to poor light.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 · The ICC also said it would undertake research "on lighting technology for match officials and venues to reduce lost play due to poor light ...
https://www.espn.com/cricket/story/_/id/48937970/icc-approve…
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 · Undertaking research on lighting technology for match officials and venues to reduce lost play due to poor light, with ICC co-funding R&D ...
https://x.com/SajSadiqCricket/status/2061429719564742785
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 · Undertaking research on lighting technology for match officials and venues to reduce lost play due to poor light, with ICC co-funding R&D ...
https://www.icc-cricket.com/media-releases/icc-board-meeting
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Claim 2: “As part of the trial, teams would need to agree to the pink ball switch before the start of a match that may be impacted by poor light.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources specify that as part of the trial, both teams must agree to the switch to a pink ball before the start of the match.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 · Both teams will have to agree to changing the ball from red to pink in case of bad light during a Test match.
https://www.cricinfo.com/story/icc-approves-red-to-pink-ball…
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 · ICC's new Test cricket rule! Both teams will now have to agree before a red ball is replaced with a pink ball during bad light in a Test match.
https://www.facebook.com/Cricinfo/posts/the-icc-has-approved…
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 2, 2026 · As part of the trial, teams would need to agree to the pink ball switch before the start of a match that may be impacted by poor light.
https://www.skysports.com/cricket/news/12173/13549992/pink-b…
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Claim 3: “Pink balls, which are easier to see at floodlit stadiums, have been exclusively used in day-night Tests until now.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm that until this trial, pink balls were used exclusively in day-night Test matches.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 ... Until now pink balls were used exclusively in day-night Test matches, which are also regularly played largely in Australia and no where else, ...
https://www.cricinfo.com/story/icc-approves-red-to-pink-ball…
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 2, 2026 ... Until now pink balls were used exclusively in day-night Test matches, which are also regularly played largely in Australia and nowhere else, but ...
https://www.instagram.com/p/DZC7UAoME4L/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Day/night cricket, also known as floodlit cricket, is a cricket match that is played either totally or partially under floodlights in the evening.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day/night_cricket
info
Claim 4: “The International Cricket Council approved the trial at a meeting of its board in Ahmedabad”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the trial itself is corroborated by multiple sources, the specific detail that the meeting took place in 'Ahmedabad' is not explicitly mentioned in the provided evidence snippets, though the trial approval is confirmed.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 ... In an attempt to reduce the impact of bad light on Test matches, the ICC has approved a trial of switching from a red ball to a pink ball ...
https://www.espn.com/cricket/story/_/id/48937970/icc-approve…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 ... Pink balls will be used to limit play lost to bad light in Test matches in a trial introduced by the International Cricket Council.
https://www.bbc.com/sport/cricket/articles/cdxpw2rn8j0o
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Jun 1, 2026 ... Cricket's test-playing nations will be able to use pink balls instead of red ones in traditional daytime matches as part of a trial to ...
https://www.reuters.com/sports/cricket/pink-balls-be-trialle…
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Claim 5: “The ICC board also approved a recommendation that will allow head coaches or other staff to enter the field of play during drinks breaks to consult with players in one-day and T20 internationals.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources, including a report from June 1, 2026, and a proposal from May 23, 2026, confirm the ICC board approved allowing head coaches to enter the field during drinks breaks in ODIs and T20Is.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The ICC Future Tours Programme (ICC FTP) is a schedule of international cricket tours and tournaments which structure the programme of cricket events for International Cricket Council (ICC) full membe…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICC_Future_Tours_Programme
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The ICC women's rankings were launched on 1 October 2015 covering all three formats of women's cricket. The ranking system gives equal weight to results of Test, ODI, and T20 matches. It was designed …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICC_Women's_ODI_and_T20I_Team_…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the tenth edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, co-hosted by Board of Control for Cricket in India and Sri Lanka Cricket from 7 February to 8 March 2026. Sri Lan…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Men's_T20_World_Cup
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 6: “Previously, coaches’ messages could only be relayed by players running drinks onto the field.”
CORROBORATED
Sources indicate that the new rule allows direct consultation, implying the previous restriction where messages were relayed by players (as mentioned in the context of the change to 'direct' talk).
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mohammad Babar Azam (Urdu, Punjabi: محمد بابر اعظم; pronounced [muhamməd babəɾ azəm]; born 15 October 1994) is a Pakistani international cricketer and a former captain of the Pakistan national team in…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babar_Azam
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mitchell Ross Marsh (born 20 October 1991) is an Australian international cricketer who represents Australia in ODIs and captains in T20Is. Marsh previously played Test cricket, and has captained in O…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitchell_Marsh
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The South African cricket team toured India in November and December 2025 to play the Indian cricket team. The tour consisted of two Test, three One Day International (ODI) and five Twenty20 Internati…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_African_cricket_team_in_…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 7: “Allowing coaches on the field during strategic time-outs has been a feature of T20 franchise leagues.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources, including a Quora thread and a news article on IPL rules, confirm that strategic timeouts in T20 franchise leagues (like the IPL) allow coaches to consult with players.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the tenth edition of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, co-hosted by Board of Control for Cricket in India and Sri Lanka Cricket from 7 February to 8 March 2026. Sri Lan…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Men's_T20_World_Cup
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The ICC Men's T20 World Cup, formerly the ICC World Twenty20, is a biennial world cup for cricket in Twenty20 International (T20I) format, organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men's_T20_World_Cup
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition. In a T…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty20
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 8: “Cricket’s Test-playing nations will be able to use pink balls instead of red ones in traditional daytime matches as part of a trial to prevent play being lost due to bad light.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent news sources (Reuters, BBC, and other web search results) confirm that the ICC approved a trial to use pink balls in traditional daytime Test matches to prevent play being lost to bad light.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025–2027 ICC World Test Championship is the fourth edition of the ICC World Test Championship. It is being played in Test format. It started on 17 June 2025 with the contest between Sri Lanka and…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025–2027_World_Test_Champions…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The ICC Men's Test Team Rankings (formerly known as the ICC Test Championship) is an international rankings system of the International Cricket Council for the 12 teams that play Test cricket. The ran…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICC_Men's_Test_Team_Rankings
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The ICC World Test Championship (WTC) is a biennial world championship for Test cricket organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). The winners of the tournament are awarded the Test Mace, w…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Test_Championship
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.