On this day: World cricket witnessed its first day/night One-Day international fixture

Exactly on this day 45 years ago, Australia and West Indies took part in a historic day/night ODI match at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in Sydney. The match was a part of the Benson & Hedges World Tri-Nations series featuring the host Australia along with West Indies and England.

The clash between Australia and West Indies was the inaugural match of the tri-series which was played in coloured clothing and with a white leather ball. That day marked a new chapter in the history of ODI cricket since its inception in 1971. 

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Australia triumphed in the opening encounter of the Benson & Hedges Tri-series

In a first, the opening match of the tournament was played under floodlights attracting an enormous number of spectators to the stadium. After winning the toss, Australian captain Greg Chappell inserted West Indies to have a bat first.

Alvin Kallicharran top-scored for the Windies but missed out on his well-deserved half-century by one run. The Australian pace attack was led by Dennis Lillee and Len Pascoe who accounted for six dismissals while Allan Border finished with sublime figures of 3-36 to restrict West Indies to 193. 

The Australian skipper led from the front and constructed a well-compiled score of 74 (100) and Kim Hughes added a superb 52 (60) to help Australia chase down the target by five wickets with 17 balls to spare. 

Despite the defeat in the series opener, West Indies managed to reach the final where they faced England in a two-match final series. They won both the matches by 2-0 in the final to clinch the Benson & Hedges World Series Cup title. 

Further advancements 

In 1979, when the ICC and World Series Cricket came to an understanding, the first floodlit One Day International was introduced, starting from Australia. 

The influence of Floodlit cricket slowly spread to other parts of the world, although England was slow to take it up due to their climate. Floodlit first-class cricket was first played in 1994, when the concept was tried during the Sheffield Shield.