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PCB decides to utilise Kookaburra balls across domestic cricket tournaments

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MenInG

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Kookaburra balls and infrastructure development

The PCB has decided to implement Kookaburra balls across these tournaments to help prepare domestic cricketers better for the international cricket.

Since Pakistan play their home Test cricket with the Kookaburra balls, having the same brand now in the first-class and non first-class tournaments will help the players prepare better for the challenges at the apex level.

It is pertinent to mention here that all limited-overs international cricket, including the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC Women’s World Cup, ICC U19 Cricket World Cup and the ICC T20 World Cups are also played with the Kookaburra balls.

To support domestic cricket and provide and improve the cricket environment for the professional cricketers, the PCB has taken measures to upgrade the quality of playing facilities, including pitches, outfields, player and umpire dressing rooms and media/broadcast working areas.

In this relation, the PCB is committed to spending over PKR2billion in upgradation of stadia in Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Rawalpindi and Quetta.

The PCB will undertake aggressive approach to market and promote Pakistan cricket throughout the course of the upcoming season. More details on the marketing and promotion plans will be shared in due course.
 
What were they using before? and can someone please post a cost comparison of the major cricket manufacturers?
 
shah_1 said:
Dukes ball
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I'm pretty sure they were using a Grays ball, which was cheap and would swing way too much. Using the Kookabura should create more balance between bat and ball and it should be easier for domestic cricketers to adjust to the international stage.

I don't know the costs, but Grays balls are definitely cheaper than Kookaburas
 
I think just by implementing this change, we see a lot more pace bowlers , as bowlers will not be able to rely at bowling at 120-130kph to take wickets.

Also would love too see Pakistani bowlers reverse swinging the ball again
 
Kookaburra ball will render the 120-130 km/hr trundlers operating in domestic cricket to be useless. You have to really bend your back and bowl 140 km/hr minimum with it. Excellent decision by the PCB, they are prepared to pay big money for the ball as long as it results in producing players ready for international cricket
 
id rather pak played both domestic and international cricket with the dukes, but this is a step in the right direction.
 
Positive move and long overdue.

Cost-cutting meant that previously, rubbish quality balls were used.
 
Savak said:
Kookaburra ball will render the 120-130 km/hr trundlers operating in domestic cricket to be useless. You have to really bend your back and bowl 140 km/hr minimum with it. Excellent decision by the PCB, they are prepared to pay big money for the ball as long as it results in producing players ready for international cricket
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Best call by PCB

Want to see most trundlers get exposed badly.
 
Very good move this. Previously there were using some local cricket balls which were definitely heavier than kookaburra balls and stay in shape for a long time resulting in low scoring games across the country. We need to familiarise ourselves with the traditions and concept of other cricketing worlds and using kookaburra is a step in right direction.
 
The Pakistan Cricket Board has decided to implement the use of Kookaburra balls in all domestic tournaments within the country, as part of a host of changes for the 2019-20 season.

The new set-up is aimed at improving the first-class structure and increasing focus on red-ball cricket, especially with the new ICC World Test Championship raising the stakes in every Test match.

All major ICC limited-overs tournaments use white Kookaburra balls. Pakistan also play their home Test matches using the Kookaburra red ball. However, the first-class structure in the country currently employs the Dukes balls.

Another notable change is the demarcation of the domestic set-up geographically. The 16 regions within Pakistan will now be split into six associations, and will work on a three-tier bottom up structure, aimed at providing a better pathway for budding cricketers to be absorbed in higher levels.

A revised payment structure is also set to be incorporated, with players set to receive increased wages. The revision will also involve handing out domestic contracts and monthly retainers to 32 non-PCB centrally contracted players.

Pakistan’s cricketing season will begin with the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, beginning 14 September, and will run until the end of the Pakistan Cup One-Day Tournament on 24 April 2020.

PCB chairman Ehsan Mani welcomed the changes: “We are delighted to announce that we have achieved the target of reforming our domestic structure. One of the key priorities of this PCB administration is to enhance the quality of cricket, which will in due course also begin to reflect in our on-field performances at the international level.”

Pakistan aims to bolster the domestic set-up, especially given the demands of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship Pakistan aims to bolster the domestic set-up, especially given the demands of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship
PCB chief executive Wasim Khan stressed that the changes have been incorporated to bolster Pakistan’s performances in global ICC events.

“The launch of the new domestic structure perfectly aligns with the World Test Championship, which commenced with the Ashes. Pakistan's opening series is in October and we aspire to feature in the final which will be held at the end of the two-year cycle in 2021.

“The PCB strongly believes in primacy of Test cricket, which is the traditional format of the game and in which we have slipped in our performances. We firmly believe this structure will not only help the PCB raise a team that can play in the 2021 final but [is] also an opportunity to the talented and skilled cricketers to represent Pakistan in the purist format of the game.

“Our scheduling of white-ball cricket will also give us every chance of being successful at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cups 2020 and 2021, and will support our preparation for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.”

https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/1329821
 
Not only will it help get the avg pace up, it's great for the development of spinners as totals will likely be higher, games last longer and spinners will bowl more overs. Pakistan need a gun test spinner arguably more than they need fast bowlers.
 
Not a fan of this move, rather they changed to using Dukes in test matches as it helps promote more enterprising cricket. The kookaburra is pure poison for the future of long-form cricket.

Unless the texture of pitches in Pakistan changes overnight to promote hard and bouncy surfaces, this will have limited effect in terms of producing test quality cricketers. The cricket played in the UAE will continue to be drab and unimaginative as well.

I envisage in a year's time that we'll be hearing how the kookaburra ball inflated first-class batting averages for hacks with no technical ability, and also significantly increased operating costs for the PCB which is no longer justifiable due to the drain on the board's finances.
 
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Last Monetarist said:
Not a fan of this move, rather they changed to using Dukes in test matches as it helps promote more enterprising cricket. The kookaburra is pure poison for the future of long-form cricket.

Unless the texture of pitches in Pakistan changes overnight to promote hard and bouncy surfaces, this will have limited effect in terms of producing test quality cricketers. The cricket played in the UAE will continue to be drab and unimaginative as well.

I envisage in a year's time that we'll be hearing how the kookaburra ball inflated first-class batting averages for hacks with no technical ability, and also significantly increased operating costs for the PCB which is no longer justifiable due to the drain on the board's finances.
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I agree that the dukes ball would be a better option and that Kookaburas are also not that high quality and they don't swing enough, but it is a step in the right direction and the Kookabura is the most widely used ball. The best solution would be if the Dukes ball became standard across all international and domestic cricket, but that's not going to happen.
 
Wasim Khan might become the savior of Pakistan cricket.

Carry on working like this lad!
 
Mueez said:
Wasim Khan might become the savior of Pakistan cricket.

Carry on working like this lad!
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He's managed to bring so much optimisim to talk about Pakistan cricket for the first time in a long time. I just hope we can see this success translate on field to the national side.
 
Firebat said:
He's managed to bring so much optimisim to talk about Pakistan cricket for the first time in a long time. I just hope we can see this success translate on field to the national side.
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I agree, Wasim promises a brightful future.

Just hope the system will reap the fruits of it soon!
 
Danyaalr01 said:
I agree that the dukes ball would be a better option and that Kookaburas are also not that high quality and they don't swing enough, but it is a step in the right direction and the Kookabura is the most widely used ball. The best solution would be if the Dukes ball became standard across all international and domestic cricket, but that's not going to happen.
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kookaburras are the highest quality balls available, you may not like them but that takes nothing away from the quality.
 
The difference between Dukes and Kookabura is that Dukes balls are hand stitched, so the seam is stitched in a more complex way which holds the ball together better and the seam is more pronounced so the ball seams more and it doesn't break or deform that easily, also they spray it with some sort of polish, which keeps it newer for longer and allows it to swing more.
The Kookabura is machine stitched, the seam is almost a decoration, the balls easily deform and don't really swing much. That may be fine for t20 cricket, or maybe even one dayers (a dukes would be better), but certainly not for red ball cricket.

Look at how test cricket in the West Indies has changed. They started producing green tracks before the dukes ball was being used and it had helped the fast bowlers, but it helped even more when the Dukes ball was introduced.
 
Time to move on from the Grays ball which moves alot more than Kookabura.This should have been done way back.The same balls should be used for the domestic as for the internationals.
Finally no more 120 km/hr trundlers will be topping bowling charts.Something that has been giving them a false sense of over confidence in their mediocre abilities.
 
Massive step in the right direction, now in terms of playing conditions next steps should be:

1) Improvement in pitch preparation to produce wickets which provide balance to both ball and bat as well as provide even bounce.

2) Improving the umpiring standards of domestics by identifying the best umpires of the countries and giving them proper courses and trainings
 
After 15 overs the kookaburra ball becomes useless and soft, so new ball bowlers will need to make the most of it. There after it will be hard work unless u have real skill or raw pace.
 
Amjid Javed said:
After 15 overs the kookaburra ball becomes useless and soft, so new ball bowlers will need to make the most of it. There after it will be hard work unless u have real skill or raw pace.
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This is actually good. Will now force bowlers to really develop both their new ball and old ball skills
 
Savak said:
This is actually good. Will now force bowlers to really develop both their new ball and old ball skills
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Yes indeed it should improve the skill set of the bowlers, be interesting to see how spinners domestically use this ball aswell.
 
People are being ridiculous. It doesn't matter whether dukes is better than the kookaburra, if the kookaburra ball is being the most widely used ball in international cricket and in most international billatarel series and tours, then our domestic players especially bowlers need to be made to use the most widely used ball in international cricket no matter how expensive it is, period.

Now I would like to see whether the same medium pace trundlers who had been consistently topping the domestic bowling charts for the last ten years can repeat their miracles with the kookaburra ball
 
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Savak said:
People are being ridiculous. It doesn't matter whether dukes is better than the kookaburra, if the kookaburra ball is being the most widely used ball in international cricket and in most international billatarel series and tours, then our domestic players especially bowlers need to be made to use the most widely used ball in international cricket no matter how expensive it is, period.

Now I would like to see whether the same medium pace trundlers who had been consistently topping the domestic bowling charts for the last ten years can repeat their miracles with the kookaburra ball
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It will separate the quality bowlers who can bowl on slightly more flatter pitches from those who can just thrive on green wickets.
 
Thank god they are using proper cricket balls in domestic cricket again!!!!!!!! That grays ball was a joke... ridiculous way to cut costs, so incompetent. Great move by WK. Glad to hear they are upgrading playing facilities as well. If they just get the pitches and grounds right, along with using a proper cricket ball, will already be a big step in the right direction.
 
Good decision! Kookaburra is the most suitable balls to be used in domestic for Pakistan. Dukes are too bowler friendly and makes it too easy for trundlers to take wickets in Pakistan domestic pitches.
 
Test players support use of Kookaburra cricket balls in domestic season 2019-20

· Initiative in line with the PCB’s efforts to narrow the gap between domestic and international cricket

· “Our bowlers, both in Test and first-class, will get a fair idea of how the Kookaburra behaves at different stages of an innings,” says Sarfaraz Ahmed

· “This will benefit our up-and-coming fast bowlers as we play our international cricket with Kookaburra balls,” says Wahab Riaz

· “There was a lot of discussion over this for quite some time and the decision to use Kookaburra brand in domestic cricket is a positive step,” says Azhar Ali

Lahore, 6 September 2019:

In a bid to bridge the gap between domestic and international cricket, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will be implementing Kookaburra balls in the upcoming domestic cricket season, which begins on 14 September.

Despite Pakistan’s men’s team playing its home Tests with the Kookaburra brand, the country’s first-class cricket was being played with the Dukes balls for the last two seasons.

Because of its hard leather and pronounced seam, Dukes had tilted the balance between the bat and the ball in the favour of the latter because of the prodigious seam and swing it provides to the fast-bowlers, especially earlier in the innings.

The Kookaburra ball is expected to help the cricketers in developing profound techniques as its condition changes over the course of an innings.

The Kookaburras gets softer as the day progresses, bringing in the spinners in the play in the latter sessions. Though, the batsmen score runs more freely with the ball getting worn out, the Kookaburra ensures the right equilibrium throughout the day.

The PCB expects investment on the Kookaburras will develop cricketers who are ready to take up the challenges of international cricket by learning how to operate at different stages of an innings.

Azhar Ali: “The conditions in domestic cricket were becoming bowling friendly, with the application of the Dukes on grassy surfaces. Batting sides were losing a lot of wickets in the first 25 over as the bowlers did not have to work hard enough in such conditions. This was keeping them from developing the habit of scoring runs.

“The bowlers will now have to work hard, which will also increase the bowling speeds of our pacers because the Kookaburra demands from the bowlers to put in efforts unlike the Dukes, which can just be floated in the air.

“There was a lot of discussion over this for quite some time and the decision to use Kookaburra brand from domestic cricket is a positive step because we play most our international cricket with Kookaburra. This will accustom the players with the brand.”

Sarfaraz Ahmed: “It is very important for a player to play the domestic cricket with the same ball that he will be playing with in international cricket. This will give our bowlers, both Test and first-class, a fair idea of how the Kookaburra behaves at different stages of an innings.

“The more we play with the Kookaburra ball, the better it is for us. We have to play our international cricket with this brand.

Senior pacers Wahab Riaz and Mohammad Amir backed the PCB’s initiative, saying this will help the up-and-coming pacers in preparing for the challenges at international level.

Wahab Riaz said: “This is going to benefit our up-and-coming fast-bowlers as we are playing our international cricket with the Kookaburra ball, except for when we play in England. They, at the moment, are not quick but seam bowlers.

“Even bowler is not aware in which direction a Dukes ball is going to swing. So, it is even more difficult for a batsman to deal with.”

Mohammad Amir said: “All international cricket is being played with the Kookaburra ball, save England and West Indies, and all of our upcoming international series are also going to be played with it.

“It is necessary for us to play with this ball because it helps our bowlers in getting accustomed to its swing and seam. The Dukes and Grays balls swing and seam more, which doesn’t give the right idea to our bowlers about how they have to go about their business after they break at the international level.”
 
correct me if Im wrong but havent we done this before? and if so what were the effects if the change? perhaps some of our resident statto's can find out?
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kookaburra cricket balls, better quality pitches, stronger teams - this season's QeA Trophy will show the men from the boys <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/QeA19?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#QeA19</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1173167388604416001?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 15, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
MenInG said:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kookaburra cricket balls, better quality pitches, stronger teams - this season's QeA Trophy will show the men from the boys <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/QeA19?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#QeA19</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1173167388604416001?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 15, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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About time the trundlers start bending their backs.
 
How does this help?

The Kookaburra ball is rubbish, it does nothing from overs 20 onwards. So swing, no seam, limited grip to spin.

You will end up with Flat Track Bulliee scoring mountains of runs, then failing outside Asia because they can’t handle lift and bounce.
 
Junaids said:
How does this help?

The Kookaburra ball is rubbish, it does nothing from overs 20 onwards. So swing, no seam, limited grip to spin.

You will end up with Flat Track Bulliee scoring mountains of runs, then failing outside Asia because they can’t handle lift and bounce.
Click to expand...

Pak will get some serious pace bowlers though as they have to bend their backs to make a difference.
 
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