Team India is all set to lock horns with Australia in the upcoming final of the World Test Championship 2023. The match is scheduled to take place at the Oval, which will start on June 7. Both teams are preparing for this epic clash, which will add another ICC trophy to the kitty of the winning team.
The Indians are desperate to win an ICC tournament, as it has been almost a decade since India has won any ICC trophy. They won the last multinational tournament in 2013 under MS Dhoni, which was the Champions Trophy in England.
Thus, they will look to end this trophy drought. Notably, India made to the final of the WTC in 2021 but lost to New Zealand and ended as runners-up. That is why, to win the upcoming WTC final, the Indian team is sweating hard at the nets and doing special fielding drills at the Arundel Ground.
Just like Shubman Gill was seen during a fielding practice using a green ball, which looked totally different from the traditional cricket balls. They are using this multi-color ball for the catching practice, especially for the slip fielders to get used to any last-minute deviations by the ball in the English conditions.
Not just green rubber balls; there were a number of yellow balls that were not the lawn tennis ones. The Indians are using these balls to sharpen their reflexes while fielding behind the wickets as close-in fielders.
To make it more clear, a prominent fielding coach revealed the reason behind the Indians using these multi-colored rubber balls. He said that these balls made of rubber and are used in fielding drills. He said, “These balls are named ‘reaction balls’ and it is used for fielding drills only in some specific countries, mainly England or New Zealand where breeze and colder conditions become a factor.”
When asked about any difference between using different colored balls, he said that there is no specific reason behind using different colors, but these balls are used in England because of the playing conditions, which result in the ball wobbling more after taking the edge or the batsman getting beaten by the ball.
He also revealed that these reaction balls are lighter than the cricket balls, which helps them to wobble and swing more than usual. He concluded, “Now coming to the colour the various colours are used because it is a human tendency to lose the sight of ball at last second. Various colours help you to judge the line of deviation till the last moment while catching the ball.”
