Alviro Patterson wrote:Not sure how 4 day test cricket can be feasible in England when the British weather is unpredictable and matches delayed to bad light are common, even in peak summer if it's overcast.
I think the increasing use of floodlights at grounds is supposed to compensate. Every test ground can host D/N ODIs, so should be able to turn the lights on if it gets dark.
If you allocate 105 overs a day, then you get 420 in 4 days, which is only 30 (or one session) less than the current 5 day allocation. Obviously it would make it slightly easier, both technically and psychologically, to play out a draw, but in the modern era where draws are becoming increasingly rare, I am not sure that's a bad thing.
My concern is the same as others have expressed - something needs to be done about over rates. If they can start at 10.30 and bowl the full allocation of 105 by 6.30, that's fine. It also makes D/N test scheduling tougher, if we continue down that road. A match finishing at 9 (well, 9.30 once the extra time was used) at Edgbaston was half empty by 9.15, as everyone was worried about the crap availability of public transport in the evening.