Dukes ball makers happy with performance of red cherry

New Delhi : Dukes ball makers have expressed their satisfaction as to how the red cherry has behaved during the first two Tests of the ongoing three-match series between England and West Indies despite the ban on using saliva to shine the ball.

West Indies tour of England marked the resumption of international cricket which was on a standstill since mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the West Indies won the first Test in Southampton by four wickets, England bagged the second Test in Manchester by 113 runs to level the series at 1-1.

"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," DilipJajodia, managing director of British Cricket Balls Ltd, which produces the Dukes balls used in England, told TimesofIndia.com.

"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 said.

Asked about the feedback from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) or the Cricket West Indies (CWI) or the players, Jajodia said: "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."

England and West Indies will now take on each other in the final Test beginning Friday at the Old Trafford.