White balls were introduced when one - day matches began being played at night under floodlights, as they are more visible at night; all professional one - day matches are now played with white balls, even when they are not played at night. The white balls have been found to behave differently to the red balls, most notably that they swing a lot more during the first half of an innings than the red ball, and that they deteriorate more quickly. Manufacturers claim that white and red balls are manufactured using the same methods and materials, other than the dying treatment of the leather. Another problem associated with white cricket balls used in One Day Internationals is that they quickly become dirty or dull in colour, which makes it more difficult for batsmen to sight the ball after 30 - 40 overs of use. Since October 2012, this has been managed by the use of two new white balls in each innings, with a different ball used from each bowling end; the same strategy was used in the 1992 and 1996 Cricket World Cups. Between October 2007 and October 2012, the issue had been managed using one new ball from the start of the innings, then swapping it at the end of the 34th over with a "reconditioned ball '', which was neither new nor too dirty to see. Before October 2007, except during 1992 and 1996 World Cups, only one ball was used during an innings of an ODI and it was the umpires discretion to change the ball if it was difficult to see.
when was the white ball first used in cricket
when one - day matches began being played at night under floodlights