Kookaburra ball experiment in County Championship could be scrapped

The controversial experiment of using the Kookaburra ball in the County Championship could be scrapped next month.

As reported by the Telegraph, county directors of cricket have indicated their desire to end use of the ball in some rounds of matches.

The issue will now be discussed by the England and Wales Cricket Board’s professional game committee (PGC), which next meets on 5 November. The PGC has the authority to remove the Kookaburra from the Championship.

First-class cricket in England and Wales is usually played with Dukes balls, which are individually stitched by hand. In general, the Dukes offers more assistance to pace bowlers.

In the aftermath of England’s last Ashes tour of Australia, when they were hammered 4-0, a high-performance review led by former captain Andrew Strauss recommended the Kookaburra be used in the Championship to help prepare players for conditions down under.

It was used for two rounds of matches in the 2023 season, with the experiment expanded to four rounds in 2024 and 2025.

Though one aim of the experiment – to bring more spinners in to the game – was largely fulfilled, it produced some dull cricket, with bat dominating ball.

In two rounds of Kookaburra matches earlier this summer, played in June, the average first-innings total across the Championship was 430. There were 59 individual scores of 100 or more and Surrey racked up 820-9 declared against Durham at The Oval.