Test cricket needs the following to happen.....

[lemmon]

Re: Test cricket needs the following to happen.....

The pitch had a little more grass than usual. It was by no means a greentop, but given the pink ball/day night conditions, it was strange not to provide a more batting friendly surface, with the evening conditions providing the balancing conditions.

Apparently the extra grass on the wicket was an attempt to preserve the ball as much as possible

[Bulldog Joe]

Re: Test cricket needs the following to happen.....

Apparently the extra grass on the wicket was an attempt to preserve the ball as much as possible

Well, for whatever reason it was a great idea.

Cricket is so much more interesting when there is an opportunity for the bowlers to have an influence.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Test cricket needs the following to happen.....

Apparently the extra grass on the wicket was an attempt to preserve the ball as much as possible

Thanks lemmon, never heard that. makes sense. In a lot of ways, this Test was kind of like Tests played in NZ, where the cloudier, heavier atmosphere tends to provide a lot of swing and the pitches tend to be lively and offer plenty of movement off the surface.
In NZ conditions are often toughest early with the ball swinging and cutting prodigiously, so the Adelaide evening sessions were a bit like the NZ mornings.

In some ways, it does make for more enjoyable cricket, with a lot of totals around 200-250, fast moving games and results. It can be frustrating for Test purists though, with a lot of batsmen deciding they'll get an unplayable delivery sooner or later, and that a quickfire 50 is about the best they can hope for, so quality innings construction and partnership building is rarer.