Bengaluru to host pink-ball Test

NT Correspondent

Sourav Ganguly, the President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), confirmed on Thursday that the two-match Test series between India and Sri Lanka will have a pink-ball Test to be played in Bengaluru.

After the white-ball series against the West Indies concludes in Kolkata on February 20, India will host Sri Lanka for three T20Is and two Tests scheduled for late February and early March.

The dates are still being tweaked, but the BCCI appears to have agreed to Sri Lanka Cricket’s request to play the shorter format first, to allow a smoother bubble-to-bubble transfer of their T20I squad, who will have just concluded a series in Australia.

This tweak also means Virat Kohli will not play his 100th Test in Bengaluru, a prospect that was on the cards after he finished the South Africa tour on 99 Tests.

The first Test will now be played in Mohali, with the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, which has now upgraded its floodlights, set to host the tour-ending pink-ball Test.

It will be just the third time India will host a pink-ball Test after playing against Bangladesh in Kolkata in November 2019 followed by facing England in Ahmedabad in February 2021. The Tests against Sri Lanka will have a new captain for India after Virat Kohli stepped down in January.

IPL venues
Ganguly also confirmed that IPL 2022 will be held in India unless a spike in Covid-19 cases spoils it. “It will be held in India this year, until and unless Covid-19 hits the roof. As far as venues are concerned, we are looking at hosting the matches in Maharashtra -- Mumbai, and Pune. We will take a call on the venues for the knockout stages later.”

Long term captaincy
Ganguly felt it is for the selection committee to decide on the long-term captain options. “Let’s leave that to the selectors. Whatever they decide on captaincy, we will go by that.”