Do Red, White And Pink Cricket Balls Behave Differently?

Three colours are utilized for cricket balls successful different formats - red, white, and pink.

The quality successful colour is down to visibility. The accepted reddish shot remains utilized for Test matches arsenic they guidelines retired successful daylight and don't conflict pinch nan players' whites

White balls were introduced for matches successful limited-overs formats, which often return spot nether floodlights for illustration One-Day Internationals and T20s. They were developed successful nan 1970s and first utilized successful nan 1992 Cricket World Cup.

Pink balls, meanwhile, are designed to supply balanced visibility successful formats which modulation from daylight to floodlights during play. They were first trialled successful nan precocious 2000s and go a staple of world cricket, having been deemed superior to replacement proceedings options including yellowish and orange.

Cricket balls person a cork interior, held together by tightly coiled yarn. The exterior of first-class balls is typically made of 4 pieces of leather which is either instrumentality aliases hand-stitched together to create nan unique seam.

Whenever a shaper produces cricket balls for nan men's first-class game, they must abide by nan pursuing measurements:

The different balls are designed pinch chopped colours for visibility reasons only, and manufacturers often insist nary quality exists beyond nan colour.

But galore players, coaches and fans judge they each behave differently.

There is simply a communal cognition nan achromatic shot swings much than nan reddish ball, and bowlers besides sometimes declare location is simply a quality successful consciousness successful nan manus betwixt nan two, starring to a flimsy quality successful grip and greater trouble generating spin.

Given nan discrepancy betwixt what nan manufacturers opportunity and what players insist they experience, location is nary conclusive reply which explains whether nan different balls really do aliases do not play differently.

But if they do, what could perchance beryllium down it?

Well, nan exteriors of nan different kinds of shot are treated somewhat otherwise during nan manufacturing process.

Red balls are commonly darkened pinch wax earlier nan lacquering process, lending them a leathery feel, while achromatic balls tin person an other furniture of polish applied to amended their radiance nether floodlights.

That creates a smoother, glassier decorativeness which could let achromatic balls to move somewhat much quickly done nan aerial and look little resistance, starring it to plaything farther than nan reddish ball. The seam connected a achromatic shot tin besides beryllium little salient than connected a reddish ball, starring to a further alteration successful aerial resistance.

The pinkish shot is treated much likewise to nan achromatic ball, though it features a achromatic aliases greenish seam to amended contrast. Some judge nan pinkish shot has a inclination to plaything moreover much than nan achromatic ball.

While nan reddish shot tin beryllium shined by players during play, nan achromatic and pinkish balls cannot. The truth nan reddish shot includes a furniture little of lacquer intends it often wears down much easy than nan achromatic and pinkish ball.

This article is nan latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. Ask Me Anything is simply a work dedicated to answering your questions. This mobility was submitted by Mark successful Preston. Thanks, Mark!

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