India’s captain Jasprit Bumrah collects the ball as he prepares to bowl on the second day of the first cricket test between Australia and India in Perth. (AP)
In the last over of the opening day in Perth, former England captain Michael Vaughan pointed out how the Kookaburra was still shiny despite the 27 overs India bowled in Australia’s first innings.
“It has not lost the shine. We can still the logo,” Vaughan had said on FOX Cricket.
With 17 wickets falling on the first day, eyebrows were raised and an incredible stat suggested that the batting average in Australia has dipped to 34 from 44 after the change of the Kookaburra balls in 2020.
“I think it was from 2016 to 2020, when the Australian batting average was 44. And then since the change of the Kookaburra ball, the sort of higher seam and the extra lacquer, the average has come down to 34. Big change,” Greg Blewett had said on 7Cricket.
What changed in the Kookaburra balls?
James Brayshaw has explained behind the reason why the Kookaburra ball is behaving in such a way now.
“They changed it about four years ago, put the extra lacquer on it and improved the stitching. And I think the ball’s been much improved since then,” said Brayshaw.
“But the batting averages in this country have dropped by 10 across the board since then, in the four years. So add that to some more souped up pitches and batting’s become a lot more difficult.”
What is lacquer?
Former Australia opener Aaron Finch explains what does the extra lacquer does.
“For the people at home, what the extra layer of lacquer does on the ball is it just keeps it harder for a little bit longer,” said Finch.
“So in the past, there’s been criticism that the ball goes soft really quick, particularly on hard Australian surfaces. So what it does now is with that extra layer, it just is another layer of protection.
“It shines up a lot better. There’s also something about it that helps it swing a little bit more consistently. So yeah, I think it’s been really good since I’ve retired.”
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