Australia players don't want two day-night Tests in 2016-17

Cricket Australia has struck another obstacle in its plans to play back-to-back day-night Tests next summer, with Australia's players arguing that one is sufficient. The final Test of the summer's first series against South Africa will be a day-night fixture in Adelaide if CA can convince the players of both sides to agree, while the first Test of the second series will be a day-nighter against Pakistan at the Gabba.

However, South Africa's cricketers have expressed their concerns about playing under lights with a pink ball, and the Australian Cricketers' Association has now also raised queries about the wisdom of playing two day-night Tests in the summer. Alistair Nicholson, the ACA CEO, met with Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland on Thursday, and a wider meeting involving the players is expected to take place after the IPL.

"The recent media regarding whether South Africa will or won't play a day-night Test is only one part of the equation," Nicholson said. "There are many other factors to be considered. The feedback we are receiving from our playing group is that there still remain concerns over day-night Tests and whilst there is acknowledgement that this format may grow the game, at this stage the players would prefer to only play one day-night Test in 2016-17.

"Pink-ball Tests are a fundamentally different game to traditional red-ball Test matches. We continue to be concerned about the durability and visibility of the pink ball, both the changing light conditions and the specifically prepared pitches are altering the conditions that the players are used to at each venue."

Last year's inaugural day-night Test between Australia and New Zealand at Adelaide Oval was over within three days, as extra grass was left on the pitch in an effort to protect the ball from too much wear and tear. Australia's captain Steven Smith said on Cricket Australia's website recently that last year's Test was "probably two millimetres of grass away from a four-day game".

South Africa captain AB de Villiers said he had met with Smith and some of the Australia players earlier this year to discuss day-night Test cricket, and "the consensus from our talks were that there are just too many unknowns". Smith said he was surprised at the comments from de Villiers and said the Australians would be happy to play a day-night Test if the South Africans wanted to.

However, the ACA said in a statement that "the legitimate concerns of the players had to be heard" in the current discussions involving Cricket Australia. He said that while the ACA welcomed the news that Cricket Australia and Cricket South Africa would continue their talks on the possibility of the Adelaide Test being day-night, the players wanted to be part of the discussion.

"The players are supportive of innovation and certainly see the bigger picture," Nicholson said. "It's about growing the game through high quality cricket, accessible to as many people as possible. That's why we urge more formal discussions with the players having a seat at the table. On behalf of the players the ACA would welcome that."