Pink Ball Test: Records, Stats and Results of Day-Night Test Matches So Far

Day-Night Test was introduced to add more to the longer format as white-ball especially the T20s has taken over the game with crowds preferring the shorter format.

The first-ever day-night Test was contested between Australia and New Zealand on November 27, 2015 at the Adelaide Oval in Adelaide, Australia. Since then, more than 20 Test matches have been played in day-night format.

Australia has played 11 among the 20 Pink Ball Tests and have won all of them. Adelaide Oval is also the venue to host the most day-night Tests so far, having hosted 7 matches so far.

The second Pink Ball Test was played in Dubai between Pakistan and West Indies a year later in 2016, while India played their first-ever day-night Test at home against Bangladesh at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata in 2019.

Since their debut Pink Ball game at the Eden Gardens, India has gone on to play three more day-night Test matches with their record being one defeat and three wins.

Also, none of day-night Test matches held so far have ended in a draw as all matches have seen a winner. And most matches have ended in the favour of the home team with Sri Lanka being the only team to win as a visiting team twice.

Why Pink Ball is used in Day-Night Test Matches?

The cricket ball manufacturers tried different colors, including optic yellow and bright orange. Fielders taking high catches could easily spot the yellow and orange balls on the field. However, batters complained of visibility due to brownish patches on pitches. Hence, they settled for the pink ball, which has better visibility for all involved.

As it stands, 26 hundreds have been scored in day-night Test matches. Pakistan’s Azhar Ali was the first batter to reach the landmark and he went on to score a triple hundred in the same innings.

Virat Kohli is the first batter from India to score hundred in Pink Ball Tests, while Australia’s Marnus Labuschagne and Sri Lanka’s Dimuth Karunaratne are the only two batters to score more than one hundred in day-night Tests.

Here is a look at the Pink Ball stats, records, results and hundreds list:

Pink Ball Test Stats and Record

Matches: 20

Home Team Won: 18

Visiting Team Won: 2

Highest Team Total: 589/3 Australia vs Pakistan in 2019

Lowest Team Total: India 36/9 vs Australia in 2020

Highest Individual Score: David Warner (Australia) – 335 not out vs Pakistan in 2019

Most Hundreds: Marnus Labuschagne (Australia) – 4 Hundreds

Total Hundreds: 26 (including 2 triple tons and 1 double hundred)

Best Bowling Innings: Devendra Bishoo (West Indies) – 8 for 49/8 vs Pakistan in 2016

Pink Ball Test Match Results List

Match No.	Date	Fixture	Venue	Result
1	27 November–1 December 2015	Australia vs New Zealand	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	Australia won by 3 wickets
2	13–17 October 2016	Pakistan vs West Indies	Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai	Pakistan won by 56 runs
3	24–28 November 2016	Australia vs South Africa	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	Australia won by 7 wickets
4	15–19 December 2016	Australia vs Pakistan	The Gabba, Brisbane	Australia won by 39 runs
5	17–21 August 2017	England vs West Indies	Edgbaston Cricket Ground, Birmingham	England won by an innings and 209 runs
6	6–10 October 2017	Pakistan vs Sri Lanka	Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai	Sri Lanka won by 68 runs
7	2–6 December 2017	Australia vs England	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	Australia won by 120 runs
8	26–29 December 2017	South Africa vs Zimbabwe	St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth	South Africa won by an innings and 120 runs
9	22–26 March 2018	New Zealand vs England	Eden Park, Auckland	New Zealand won by an innings and 49 runs
10	23–27 June 2018	West Indies vs Sri Lanka	Kensington Oval, Bridgetown	Sri Lanka won by 4 wickets
11	24–28 January 2019	Australia vs Sri Lanka	The Gabba, Brisbane	Australia won by an innings and 40 runs
12	22–26 November 2019	India vs Bangladesh	Eden Gardens, Kolkata	India won by an innings and 46 runs
13	29 November–3 December 2019	Australia vs Pakistan	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	Australia won by an innings and 48 runs
14	12–16 December 2019	Australia vs New Zealand	Perth Stadium, Perth	Australia won by 296 runs
15	17–21 December 2020	Australia vs India	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	Australia won by 8 wickets
16	24–28 February 2021	India vs England	Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad	India won by 10 wickets
17	16–20 December 2021	Australia vs England	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	Australia won by 275 runs
18	14–18 January 2022	Australia vs England	Bellerive Oval, Hobart	Australia won by 146 runs
19	12–16 March 2022	India vs Sri Lanka	M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore	India won by 238 runs
20	8–12 December 2022	Australia vs West Indies	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	Australia won by 419 runs

Pink Ball Test Hundreds List

100 No.	Player	Team	Versus	Score
1	Azhar Ali	Pakistan	West Indies	302
2	Darren Bravo	West Indies	Pakistan	116
3	Faf du Plessis	South Africa	Australia	118
4	Usman Khawaja	Australia	South Africa	145
5	Stephen Cook	South Africa	Australia	104
6	Steven Smith	Australia	Pakistan	130
7	Peter Handscomb	Australia	Pakistan	105
8	Asad Shafiq	Pakistan	Australia	137
9	Alastair Cook	England	West Indies	243
10	Joe Root	England	West Indies	136
11	Dimuth Karunaratne	Sri Lanka	Pakistan	196
12	Asad Shafiq	Pakistan	Sri Lanka	112
13	Shaun Marsh	Australia	England	126
14	Aiden Markram	South Africa	Zimbabwe	125
15	Kane Williamson	New Zealand	England	102
16	Henry Nicholls	New Zealand	England	145
17	Virat Kohli	India	Bangladesh	136
18	David Warner	Australia	Pakistan	335*
19	Marnus Labuschagne	Australia	Pakistan	162
20	Yasir Shah	Pakistan	Australia	113
21	Marnus Labuschagne	Australia	New Zealand	143
22	Marnus Labuschagne	Australia	New Zealand	103
23	Travis Head	Australia	England	101
24	Dimuth Karunaratne	Sri Lanka	India	107
25	Marnus Labuschagne	Australia	West Indies	120*
26	Travis Head	Australia	West Indies	114*