England vs West Indies: Dukes ball owner happy with performance of the ball in no saliva conditions

NEW DELHI: Ever since the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the ban on the use of saliva on the ball as per cricket's new Covid-19 protocols, there was immense speculation about the performance of the bowlers. The series in focus was of course the ongoing England vs West Indies three-Test series, which marked the return of international cricket after the Covid storm hit the world.While the West Indies won the first Test in Southampton by four wickets, England won the second Test in Manchester by 113 runs to level the series at 1-1.Both the Tests were played in overcast conditions which were favourable for swing bowlers. A total of 68 wickets fell in the two Tests combined. Talking to TimesofIndia.com, Dilip Jajodia, managing director of British Cricket Balls Ltd, which produces the Dukes balls used in England, expressed satisfaction at the performance of the ball, saying it provided the perfect balance between bat and ball. "As I had predicted the Dukes ball will be fine because the ball needs proper construction, just putting saliva or wax or whatever it is, that does not automatically make the ball swing. The ball won't swing if it's not the right shape and it will need all the assistance that it can get if it's not adequate. I am confident that our ball is the right shape, it's constructed properly, the quarter seams are closed, it's seam stays prominent and the ball moves (in the air). Polishing it because it's an English type finish with the grease and the lather, you saw Woakes (Chris) swinging the ball right upto the end. So that's the message that needs to get into people's minds that - if you want a ball for international cricket it should be hand-crafted, not machine-stitched, that's the main thing," Jajodia told TimesofIndia.com.On being asked about the feedback, if there was any, from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) or the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) or the players, Jajodia remarked, "There has been no feedback, no feedback means everything is OK. You only get comments when it's bad news. I have been in this business for many years and my view is: No news is good news, otherwise there are just unnecessary comments."On being asked for his views on whether the saliva ban on the ball should continue after the situation normalises, Jajodia stated, "It's really a question of what the authorities think. There will be pressure from the southern hemisphere to allow it do it again because frankly it (the ball) needs all the help it can get, because it doesn't swing naturally, it goes soft etc., all those things are written about the other alternative ball (Kookaburra) and also the balls available and used in India (SG). Those balls need some assistance to make them behave in a certain way. Now, I have been confident and I have been saying it all along, we have a bespoke approach, so when we produce the balls to be used in England, we know how to make it behave correctly for a balanced game in England. We do the same for the West Indies and that works, so if anybody talks to us, it's about being professional and coming up with the right answer, the right product for those conditions. Not just one ball and say this is for the whole world, it doesn't work. Pitches are different, weather conditions are different, soil is different, so you have to put your mind to it. And fortunately for me, I have travelled a lot, I have been all around the world and I have some idea of what the soil is like and so on and therefore we put our minds to coming up with different surface finishes, which is what produces the ball that behaves properly in those conditions and gives the balance between bat and ball, that's what this is all about."Cricket Australia last week dropped the Dukes ball from its 2020/21 Sheffield Shield season. Dukes balls were introduced to Shield cricket in the 2016/17 season to help prepare Australian players for the ball used on English pitches for the 2019 Ashes.Australia retained the urn on English soil last year for the first time since 2001 with a 2-2 draw in the series and Cricket Australia said that they will use only the Kookaburra to encourage more spin bowling on home pitches."Did any of those bowlers actually play with the Dukes ball in Australia? How many of the bowlers who came to England actually played Sheffield Shield cricket? All these things need to be investigated. In cricket generally, there is a lot of politics involved, we have proven that our product works in Australia. Every comment made in Australia, by famous people like Shane Warne, Ricky Ponting, Glenn McGrath, George Bailey, Ed Cowan, well-known cricketers in Australia, they are all calling for change, but not getting any, so you can draw your own conclusion. We can only offer the product and say it's the right product, we developed it, we proved its worth and it's up to the customers. At the end of the day you can't force somebody, it's up to the players themselves, the management and also the media, people can see what's going on. So it's up to people to make comments, but there is no doubt in my mind that we have a ball that is perfect for Australia, good for cricket." Jajodia told TimesofIndia.com. Coming back to the England-West Indies Tests, Jajodia said, "It wasn't easy to score runs but somebody like Stokes scored a lot of runs and he proved that he is the best player. So at the end of the day, all the ball has to do is to provide a balance between bat and ball and let the players use their skills. Then of course, the conditions come into it, you can't control everything but if you look at the performance of the Dukes ball in international cricket over a period of time, you will find that it provides the balance. That's all you can do, can't do anymore."The third Test between England and West Indies starts on Friday and will also be played in Manchester.