Australia on Thursday introduced plans to ditch the English Dukes ball in home cricket and revert to utilizing solely the normal Kookaburra for the subsequent Sheffield Defend season. Cricket Australia launched the Dukes ball in 2016 and so they had been used within the second half of every Defend season to attempt to accustom gamers to circumstances in England, the place Australian batsmen had usually struggled. Dukes balls are inclined to have a extra pronounced seam, enabling them swing additional and for longer when new than the Australian-made Kookaburras. Cricket Australia’s head of operations Peter Roach mentioned reverting to the Kookaburra was the appropriate transfer presently.
“The introduction of the Dukes ball has been a worthwhile train, notably within the lead-up to abroad Ashes collection the place the Dukes is used so nicely by our English opponents,” he mentioned.
“Now we have been proud of how the ball has carried out when utilized in Australian circumstances over the previous 4 seasons.
“We do, nevertheless, really feel that reverting to at least one ball for 2020-21 will present the constant examination of our gamers over a full season that (Cricket Australia) and the states are presently looking for,” he added.
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Whereas England proceed to make use of Dukes, the Kookaburra is used for Exams in lots of different elements of the world and broadly in limited-overs cricket.
Roach mentioned Cricket Australia may contemplate reintroducing Dukes balls nearer to the subsequent Ashes collection in England, which is because of happen in 2023.
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