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India and Bangladesh will compete for their first-ever Day-Night Test at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, start from Friday (November 22).
The toss is scheduled to take place at 12.30 pm IST, and the play will begin at 1:00 pm IST. The lunch break lasting for 40 minutes will be between 3 pm and 3.40 pm, and the tea break, spanning 20 minutes, will be from 5.40 pm to 6 pm.
However, the former Indian skipper Rahul Dravid has pointed out that dew will play a major role in the game. And how this factor is controlled would determine the future of Day-Night Test in India.
“It is not the only solution to rejuvenate Test cricket, but it is one of the things we need to do. If only we are able to control dew, the pink ball Test can become an annual feature in India,” Dravid was quoted as saying to the Economic Times.
Sujan Mukherjee, the head groundsman at the Eden Gardens, meanwhile, revealed that he started using the anti-dew spray a few days before the Test match. Since the sun sets at around 4:30 pm IST in Kolkata, dew will play a significant role in the second Test and therefore it will be very tricky for the bowlers.
As far as the pitch is concerned, the surface has a sharp covering of grass so that the ball retains its shape and shine for a longer period of time. Hence, it will assist the fast bowlers a lot, especially under the lights.
Also, there is a library of balls made available to the umpires and if the ball goes out of shape, adequate replacements will be present.
Well, if the batsmen complain of not being able to see the ball properly during the twilight period, the umpires will have to take a call whether to switch on the lights earlier than expected.
Probable XI:
Kuldeep Yadav has been in the midst of a lot of pink-ball practice – including during session breaks in Indore – but it is unlikely that India will tamper with the line-up that wrapped up the first Test in two and a half days.
India: Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma.
Bangladesh could consider bringing in Al Amin and Mustafizur Rahman by benching Ebadat Hossain (along with Mohammad Mithun), who didn’t quite impress alongside Abu Jayed in Indore.
Bangladesh: Imrul Kayes, Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Mohammad Mithun/Mustafizur Rahman, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Liton Das, Mehidy Hasan, Taijul Islam, Abu Jayed, Ebadat Hossain/Al Amin Hossain.
