Changes to the Standard Bank Cup playing conditions

Johannesburg - Those who like to eat their left-over naartjies (a type of citrus fruit ) in October get a chance this year to indulge in their favourite exercise when the domestic day/night series moves to its now traditional early season format.

Which indicates that the United Cricket Board, disturbed by falling audiences for the local slog event, switches on the season from October 4 with 13 matches being played until October 18 when we have a month's recess.

The worry over falling spectators has come after the Standard Bank Cup programme last season was switched on only in December 1 and went almost unnoticed with the national broadcaster ignoring it all together, piqued it seems because of the inroads made by the pay channel SuperSport, who sponsor the first-class series.

While some of the playing conditions have been altered in a bid to speed up the game and give the captain a chance to utilise the pinch-hitter in an expanded role, the fielding captain now has an extra 15 minutes to bowl his overs with games starting at 3.45pm instead of 4pm.

As Brian Basson, the UCB's director of playing affairs and umpiring, outlined yesterday when the fixtures and other assorted information was released, there have been several alterations to the playing conditions designed to make the game move a lot smoother.

A fielding restriction amendment after 15 overs has been introduced for the first time which is where the extra pinch-hitting exercise gets a chance to lift the scoring rate; it also means for tighter bowling and fielding skills. Well, that's the general idea.

At present the playing conditions allow for only two fieldsmen outside the circle in the first 15 overs. From this season, as an experiment, only four fieldsmen are going to be allowed outside the circle from overs 16 to 30. The remaining 15 overs of the innings reverts to the "captain's fielding option" which means he can indulge in whatever fielding arrangement he feels best. The single bouncer an over law remains.

The traditional use of two white balls in the domestic slog falls away next season with the fielding side being restricted to one, a move which falls into line with International Cricket Council playing conditions for their limited-overs internationals. South Africa's bid to push the ICC into the use of two balls has, Basson admitted yesterday, not met with universal approval.

South Africa reverted to playing with one white ball during the 1992/93 season but Dr Ali Bacher, on a visit to P A M Brink Stadium in Springs early in 1992, was horrified how the ball was badly discoloured after a few overs in a game between Easterns and Free State. He had the decision to play the domestic day/nighters with only one ball reversed.

Basson predicted there would be problems, but as South Africa had to fall in line with ICC playing codes and conditions, the players would have to learn to cope with batting under dodgy light against something looking as grubby as a rolled up bunch of rags plucked from the nearest drain.

The UCB have decided against a proposal, no doubt from the captains and coaches, which sought to have points from all games carried over to the Super Eights in the SuperSports Series games. Northerns and Western Province suffered most as a result last summer and ended lowly seventh and eighth on the log.

While the majority of February is given over to the day/night play-offs, the Super Eights and Shield sections get a chance to flex their strength throughout the summer with the A Section final scheduled over five days from March 21 to 25.

Northerns have three games in the first portion of the day/night programme with a home game against Western Province on October 6 followed by the outing against Free State in Bloemfontein and at home again against North West a week later.

This is followed by a nearly three week gap to the start of their Pool A four-day match against Griqualand West in Centurion and neighbours Gauteng the following week in the Wanderers bullring.

There is no place in the programme for the Natal Midlands side for next season, which means the first we'll get to see of them in any form of competition is in 2001/02, about 15 months after the UCB grant them provincial status.

Basson did say, however, the provincial programme could, if it was so desired, accommodate the 12th province.