The International Cricket Council has approved a trial of switching from a red ball to a pink ball in a Test that is likely to be affected by bad light, subject to prior agreement of both participating teams.

The decision was one of several recommendations from the chief executives committee that were approved by the ICC board at a meeting in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

Pink balls are used exclusively in day-night Test matches, but the trial of changing from a red ball to a pink ball during a day Test seeks to allow play to continue under lights and minimise the time and overs lost to bad light.

The ICC also said it would undertake research “on lighting technology for match officials and venues to reduce lost play due to poor light, with ICC co-funding R&D projects alongside Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).”

The board also approved a recommendation that will allow head coaches — or designated staff — to enter the field of play during scheduled drinks intervals and consult with their players in ODIs and T20Is.

A feature in franchise T20 leagues, this was not permitted in international cricket so far and messages could only be relayed through the players carrying drinks. In the IPL, support staff interact with their players during strategic timeouts.

In T20Is, the ICC said the break between innings would be 15 minutes, and batters would be required to be ready at the resumption of play.

In another significant change in playing conditions, the ICC permanently adopted the leg-side wides trial — which uses a batter’s position at the point of delivery as the point of reference — and approved the use of Hawk-Eye data by match officials when considering reports of suspected illegal bowling actions.

The board, too, adopted the practice of using guidelines to help umpires adjudicate wides down the line side, especially when a batter is moving around his crease.

Canada banned

The ICC has suspended Cricket Canada with immediate effect “due to serious breaches of its membership obligations.

The Canadian national teams would continue to participate in ICC events and access funding through a controlled mechanism overseen by the governing body to ensure players are not adversely affected by the administrative issues.

It also addressed governance matters in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Representatives Dr Mohammed Moosaje and Tavengwa Mukuhlani will be there to oversee the the board’s electoral process.