SYDNEY – Retiring selector Mark Waugh has lashed out at “selfish” Indiafor refusing to play a day-night Test during their tour of Australia,accusing the cricketing power of holding back the game.

Cricket Australia wanted the first Test in Adelaide from December 6 playedunder lights to tap into the growing popularity of pink-ball cricket.

But India, who are yet to play a day-night Test, said they were notinterested in experimenting in such a high-profile series.

The Australians have played four day-night Tests since 2015, three of themin Adelaide, winning them all.

Waugh, who is stepping down as a national selector when his contractexpires on August 31, said the decision was not only disappointing, butselfish given the falling popularity of Test cricket.

“It s a little bit selfish from India s point of view because we need torevitalise Test cricket,” he said in The Australian newspaper Thursday.

“Day-night Test cricket in some countries is going to be one of thoseingredients that could transform Test cricket back to where it should be.”

CA believes day-night Test cricket is a more television-friendly format andperhaps the only way to revitalise the five-day version of the game whichis flagging globally following the rise of the quickfire Twenty20 format.

Waugh said Australia, India and England were the only places where Testcricket was “alive and well”.

“India s team is pretty well suited to day-night cricket, they ve got astring of fast bowlers, so they don t just rely on the spinners and theirbatsman are technically very good as well,” he said.

“So for the greater good of the game, I would have loved to have seen thatas a day-night Test.”

In announcing their decision earlier this month, BCCI administrator VinodRai said “nobody can put a gun on to our head and say play (day-nightcricket)”.

“There have been doubts about the pink ball itself in Duke and Kookaburra,”he added, referring to the English and Australian ball manufacturers.

India experimented with pink ball cricket in its Duleep Trophy domesticchampionship in 2016 but administrators and top players remain wary aboutplaying at international level.

India are will tour Australia from November 21 to January 19 with fourTests, three Twenty20 internationals and three one-day games on theschedule. – APP/AFP