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Pink ball cricket 'is the way forward' - Ganguly

Cape Town -Former India captain Sourav Ganguly believes day-night Test cricket is the way forward if the longest format is to be preserved, and feels that boards need to market it with common sense in mind.

Speaking at a Star Sports panel ahead of India's first domestic First Class game under lights, Ganguly said that it made perfect sense to use the pink ball format, because it would allow more people to watch Tests after work. 

He added that resisting day-night Tests would be futile in the long run, and would be damaging to spectator numbers. T20 cricket was resisted at first, but is now very popular because of its easy access, he said.

Ganguly said: "Pink ball, to me, is the way forward. Firstly, with common sense, it gets people to the ground after work. You finish work at 5pm and then you come in the evening, spend a few hours, watch cricket and go back. 

"Test match cricket is also played at a faster pace than what it used to be. You have got to market it.

"You have got to find a way to bring people into the ground. Everything in life needs innovation. This [day-night Test cricket] is here to stay. 

"It has got to be told to the people, like we sell IPL, like we sell T20 cricket, like we sell one-day cricket - that come have fun and go. Test cricket has to go that way."

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