Pink ball to be used in QEA final

The Division One final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan's first-class tournament, will be played with a pink ball, under floodlights, the Pakistan Cricket Board has said. The final of last year's tournament was also held under floodlights but was played with an orange ball.

Last year, the two teams in the final, Habib Bank Limited and Pakistan International Airlines, practised with both an orange and pink ball before the match. The decision to play with the orange ball was made after receiving inputs from both teams.

This year, however, the PCB has decided to use the pink ball in the final, which will be played from December 20-24 at the National Stadium in Karachi, after receiving advice from the ICC.

The QEA final will become part of ongoing trials to determine whether Test match cricket can be played under lights, and what ball will be most suited to a day-night Test match. Earlier this year a County Championship match between Kent and Glamorgan at Canterbury was played with a pink ball. The MCC versus Champion County match, which has been staged in Abu Dhabi for the last two seasons, has also been played under floodlights with the pink ball and the 2012 edition will be played under the same conditions.