Aussie Wade hoping to remain in the pink against South Africa
The Australian wicket keeper is aiming to avoid any problems with the day-night ball as home side face historic whitewash at Adelaide.
Matthew Wade insists he will cope in this week's day-night Test against South Africa despite having difficulty in picking up the pink ball under lights due to his colour-blindness.
The Victorian gloveman has been recalled at the expense of Peter Nevill among a raft of changes for the third Test at Adelaide from Thursday with Australia desperate to prevent a clean-sweep by the Proteas after defeats in Hobart and Perth.
Wade, banished from Test cricket three years ago due to shoddy glovework, admits his vision problem makes it difficult with the pink ball under lights, but is confident of adapting.
"I played pink ball at Adelaide Oval last year in a Shield game, so it'll be interesting to see what it does in the Test arena. You've just got to get used to it," he told reporters.
"I've got to work it out"
"I think it's trying to get it out of your mind. I can see the colour of the ball, I pick it up. It's just at times it takes a little bit longer to work out the depth of where it's coming. It can't be an issue; I've got to work it out."
The match will be only the second day-night Test in Australia after the home side thrillingly beat New Zealand by three wickets on only the third day at Adelaide Oval last year.
Wade, recalled as much for his batting prowess as his keeping skills, said he found it easier now to cope with the pink ball than when it was first rolled out as a Sheffield Shield experiment in the 2013-14 season.
"I've got more used to it I suppose," he said. "The more you play, you get more used to it, but the ball is getting better year-in, year-out."
Former Test opener Chris Rogers also suffered from colour-blindness and in 2014 withdrew from a match in which a pink ball was being trialled.
South Africa whitewash
Australia go into Thursday's game on the back of five straight Test defeats and with the team in crisis as they look to stop South Africa becoming the first touring team to sweep a series Down Under.
Stung by two humiliating defeats in Perth and Hobart, the Aussies have made six changes in a bid to stop the rot and fight off the Proteas' quest to become the first touring team to sweep a series in Australia.
It is a seismic selection switch in the wake of last week's sudden resignation of chairman of selectors Rod Marsh and intensifying pressure on the game's top officials and coach Darren Lehmann.
Not since only two players from the fifth Test against England in August 1977 made it into the team for the first Test against India three months later, after World Series Cricket rebelled against the establishment, has there been such a clean-out of the Australian side.
The last time there were as many as five changes mid-season -- which is likely given either pacemen Jackson Bird or Chadd Sayers is likely to be 12th man in Adelaide -- was in the 1977-78 series against India after an innings defeat in Sydney.
Selectors, with Trevor Hohns taking over from Marsh as interim chairman, named three young batsmen -- English-born Matt Renshaw, Peter Handscomb and Nic Maddinson -- to make their debuts and recalled Sayers, Bird and Wade.
Australia crisis
It was a decisive and drastic intervention by the under-fire selection panel in the wake of Australia's fifth straight heavy Test defeat, including the 3-0 series drubbing in Sri Lanka last August.
"I'm not for one minute going to suggest an immediate turnaround," Hohns said. "Patience will be required but we are obviously hopeful that these players can gel together and ultimately stop the downward losing momentum we are currently experiencing. It's no secret that our Test team has not functioned or performed to the level we expect.
"We accept that a lot of the criticism that has come our way has been warranted, however, I ask that everybody take a deep breath and get behind these blokes in what is going to be a very testing time for them."
The reinforcements will be aiming to bolster Australia's insipid batting, which was routed for 85 by South Africa in Hobart after suffering a humiliating 10 for 86 collapse in the first innings at Perth.