debut: 3/6/20
4,427 runs
The difference between the balls is well-established: the Kookaburra is machine-made in Australia, while the Dukes is hand-stitched in the UK. "It doesn't swing as much as the Dukes," James Anderson explained on the Tailenders podcast. "There's a different lacquer that coats it… the Dukes, for some reason, swings more and for longer."
The idea came from Andrew Strauss' high-performance review, which highlighted the dearth of genuine pace and spin in English domestic cricket. "We aren't encouraging the development of the 'extreme' skills required to succeed in international cricket," the review said. It proposed a pilot trial to "test the impact on bowlers' skills development", and two rounds were played with the Kookaburra last summer.
The pilot has not been universally popular. Alec Stewart, Surrey's director of cricket, has described the Kookaburra's implementation as "the worst decision ever". Alfonso Thomas, the Leicestershire coach, said it has "made average batters look very good". When Somerset skipper Lewis Gregory was asked for his view, he replied: "Can I swear?"
The need to hit the deck hard with the Kookaburra has been offset by the fact that early season English decks are not hard. That also meant short-ball plans -- something bowlers turn to when a ball of any shape stops moving through the air -- were ineffectual. Some teams were also bemused that no two balls seemed to behave the same.
