Notts engineers light up Canberra

Canberra's inaugural international - Australia's floodlit ODI against West Indies at Manuka Oval on Wednesday - is a source of particular pride for a group of Nottinghamshire engineers.

The floodlights for the first day-night international in Canberra's history - and, incidentally, the first time Australia had played an ODI at Manuka Oval - were provided by the UK lighting company Abacus.

The new lighting means that Australia's capital city can anticipate more international matches after a history at Manuka Oval limited to only two neutral matches in the last 21 years. The inaugural match under lights was played between West Indies and a Prime Minister's XI on January 29.

The sea freight shipment including 20 containers and two large steel pallets was flown directly via Singapore from East Midlands and London Heathrow in the UK to Changi Airport and onwards to Canberra.

Abacus, which has supplied floodlights to English grounds including Lord's, The Oval, Edgbaston and Trent Bridge, claims the floodlights are now the most sophisticated in Australia. Each of the six masts contains four different types of light - wide, medium, narrow and extra-narrow - which are fanned out to ensure an equal coverage on the playing surface.