Over the years cricket has changed tremendously to make the game more appealing to the public's eye, but have all of the changes been beneficial?The one change in the game that I want to focus on is the difference in the ball colour from red to white. To the general public this may seem insignificant, but to the cricketer there is a considerable difference worth investigating.It used to be when you thought of the game of cricket you imagined players wearing white clothing accompanied with a red ball. This is labelled as the traditional wear, but in an effort to market and promote the game to make it more attractive, coloured clothing was introduced.This forced the changing of the ball from red to white, as the red ball became camouflaged in the coloured clothing, making it nearly impossible to see when batting. Looking at the surface you would think that there would be no differences other than the colour, but this is not the case. In actual fact there are major differences.I grew up playing with the red ball and have since which been introduced to the white ball and I can tell you and am a witness that it is far easier for batsmen to bat the white ball over the red.Here is a comparison of the red ball to the white:Red balls tend to last the entire 50 over game.White balls have to be changed after 34 overs because of wear and tear.Red balls swing about in the air much longer than the white ball.White balls swing more earlier in the game.When the white ball was first introduced I was coaching St.David's and immediately we recognised a huge difference. We had a player by the name of Arthur Pitcher Jr who could swing the red ball big all game, but could swing the white ball extremely big early, but after ten overs it barely moved.On the surface my response was bad, but what I did recognise as a coach was that this could really help a swing bowlers overall game. They now had to learn to bowl with more variation, which in the end improved them as a bowler.Here are some views of some of our seasoned top players on this debate.Jacobi Robinson (Somerset captain) The red ball is better because it holds its shine longer and as a bowler you are able to get more out of it in the later overs. The red ball swings longer and it stays harder which allows the bowler to get more bounce. It is hard to get any swing from an old white ball, which makes it easier for batting. Another disadvantage is that because the white ball goes soft it doesn't travel as far when you hit it.Dean Minors (former Bermuda national team wicketkeeper) The swing of the ball is the major difference in that the red ball swings more and longer. Also from a wicketkeeper's perspective the white ball is a nightmare because as it gets scuffed up it becomes very difficult to see at times. There can also be problems at night when using the white ball. If it is hit high in the air the lights become a factor making it difficult to see, especially if the field doesn't have proper lighting.Charles Richardson (Cleveland County) - Well for me the nature and quality of the ball is a big factor. I am not a fast seam bowler like Kevin Hurdle or George O Brien.I am one of those seam bowlers that rely primarily on movement of the ball through the air and off the wicket to defeat batsmen. The white ball moves around more in the early overs than the red ball, but its ability to swing and cut off the seam rapidly diminishes as the overs deplete.The red ball however will swing from the outset but not as prodigiously as the white ball, and it maintains its ability to move longer than the white ball. Moreover, the red ball has a tendency to respond very well to polishing throughout the innings whereas the white ball often has to be changed near the end of the innings due to scuffing and wearing.It is obvious that the quality of the red ball is far superior than the white ball, hence the reason why a pink ball was being looked at. Recently there have been experiments with a pink ball to see if it would last longer and hold its colour longer. Statement from the MCC website: MCC has, to date, trialed a pink ball in seven separate games or tournaments, with largely successful results.Players and umpires have reported improved colour retention and visibility. Could this mean that in the future cricket will be played with a pink cricket ball providing further tests come back with positive results?The fact of the matter is that all balls are made from cork and latex rubber on the inside and leather on the outside. However on the white ball it has polyurethane covering that the red ball doesn't have. Players around the world feel that early when the white ball is new it swings more than the red ball. However, they also find that the white ball is harder, hurts your hands, breaks bats and acts differently than the red ball. Scientists are now trying to find ways to make the white ball more durable and stand up to the test of a full 50 over game.My big question is if the red ball is far superior then why won't we just stick to the traditional one-day game white clothing and a red ball? Do we have more people watching the World Cup because of coloured clothing? Should we jeopardise the standards of the game to peak more interest? Is it really that much more attractive to the public?This one change has sparked a whole list of questions resulting in differing opinions. Here's one more. Are we in jeopardy of losing the tradition of cricket all together?Watch the remainder of the World Cup thinking about the red ball v the white ball. It may pose questions in your mind about the performances of your favourite players.