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The decision to postpone the first session of the third Test between Sri Lanka and England at The Oval due to poor lighting was met with displeasure by former England captain Michael Vaughan, who stated that the game’s format needed to be changed to provide more value for ticketed spectators.
‘People are paying to watch’: Michael Vaughan
The last Test between the two nations got underway in incredibly cloudy and gloomy weather. Although it didn’t rain during the opening hour of play on Friday, September 6, the majority of the first session was played in the floodlights. The players left the field because the umpires judged there was not enough light, 79 minutes into the session.
After eating an early lunch, Vaughan became irate with the organizers when the second session started late because of a light drizzle and poor lighting. The former captain maintained that the match ought to have continued and that “they would be playing” if it had been a Twenty20 match.
“What deliveries that posed a risk to safety had occurred in the recent fifteen minutes? Proceed to a pink ball and continue. Teams will have to acknowledge that bad luck happens. You won’t be able to please everyone with all these suggestions”, he remarked.
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“All I want is for them to continue. It concerns the viewers who pay to watch. More than any other format, test cricket is under peril. It would be a T20 if they were playing. To find a method to provide the paying public with better value, I would do anything.” He remarked.
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Concerns were also expressed by the MCC on the underwhelming attendance during the England-Sri Lanka Test series. They had acknowledged in a statement that they needed to reevaluate the ticket pricing schedule.
“Given the way that Test cricket is currently played, we will be paying particular attention to the structure of fourth day tickets in our pricing reviews,” stated Guy Lavender, chief executive of the MCC.
“This Test being later than usual at the end of the school holidays and England’s dominant performance at Lord’s earlier this summer are likely contributing factors to the slower sales on the fourth day of this match compared to the West Indies.”
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