the 2019 Ashes series between Australia and England, giving Australia (the away team) the comparative advantage to either bat first or field first. In an ICC committee meeting in May 2018, the ICC announced that the traditional method of the coin toss in test cricket would be retained, as it is an "integral part" of the sport that also "forms part of the narrative of the game". Between 2016 and 2019 in the English County Championship there was no mandatory toss, with the away side having the choice to field first. If the away side declined to field first, the toss still took place. For the 2018–19 Big Bash League season in Australia, the toss was replaced by a bat flip, with "hills and flats" used instead of heads or tails. Batting first If the team is uncertain about the nature of the pitch or simply wants to play safe, they often bat first. If the opposition bowling is strong, batting first is often considered a good option. Sometimes the nature of the pitch deteriorates while the game progresses, making batting more difficult especially if facing spin bowling. Another advantage of batting first is that the batting team sets a target for the team batting second to chase. This can create pressure on the team's batsmen and cause problems for the team batting second. Batting second The captain opts to bat second if he is confident that their team can successfully chase any total. Once the target is known, the team does not have to worry about setting a winnable score. The team just has to limit the opposition to a low score, and bat well to successfully chase the target. If the pitch does not deteriorate, batting second is usually a better option. Another advantage of batting second is during day-night One Day International games, played under lights. In some venues, the cricket ball collects a lot of dew in the outfield. This results in a poor grip on the ball by the bowlers. With a moist ball, it is difficult to spin and swing the ball. The difficulty in holding the ball also means that the bowler is more likely to be inaccurate, giving the batsmen more ill-directed deliveries to hit. Influence of toss on outcome Winning the toss provides a small, but significant improvement to a team's chances of winning. Based on the 2,106 Test matches played