Flushed with the success of the inaugural day-night Test match, Cricket Australia has further embraced the innovation by scheduling another pink ball round of four-day Sheffield Shield matches for mid-February. More than 123,000 fans passed through the gates at Adelaide Oval over the three days of last month's experimental test against New Zealand, a record for a non-Ashes match.
That far outstripped the paltry crowds for the test against West Indies last week at Bellerive Oval in Hobart as well as the Brisbane and Perth matches against the Black Caps - all played in more traditional daylight hours. Round seven of the interstate Sheffield Shield championship will now take place under lights with the WACA in Perth, the Gabba in Brisbane and Adelaide all hosting day-night matches starting on February 14. "The public's response to the first day-night test was overwhelmingly positive and we've now had some time to evaluate feedback from everyone involved in the match," Cricket Australia's Sean Cary said in a news release.