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Best Cricket Bats

Updated May 2022
Bottom line
Pros
Cons
Best of the Best
Skihi SS Kashmir Willow Leather Ball Cricket Bat
Skihi
SS Kashmir Willow Leather Ball Cricket Bat
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Best for Experts
Bottom Line

This short handle cricket bat with quality craftsmanship runs at an inexpensive price and comes in a few different colors.

Pros

Well crafted with thick edges. Short handle. Thick bat with a lightweight build. Well balanced. Good quality at an inexpensive price

Cons

A few received one with dents or cracks in the handles.

Best Bang for the Buck
SPORTAXIS Wooden Cricket Set
SPORTAXIS
Wooden Cricket Set
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Best for Beginners
Bottom Line

The perfect option that comes with everything a child, who is new to the sport, will need to get more experience.

Pros

Kit includes 2 tennis balls and bails, 3 stumps, a bat, and a carrying bag. Made of high quality, durable material.

Cons

Some reviewers said the stumps broke after a few uses.

SS T20 Legend Club Premium Cricket Bat
SS
T20 Legend Club Premium Cricket Bat
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For Casual Play
Bottom Line

A great option for adult players who are familiar with cricket and enjoy playing the sport casually.

Pros

Short handle with a ripple grip. Toe guard to protect from moisture included. Lightweight build with thick edges. Well-balanced and sturdy build.

Cons

A couple of reviewers had issues with the stability of the handle.

SS Kashmir Willow Cricket Bat, Short Handle
SS
Kashmir Willow Cricket Bat, Short Handle
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For Intermediate Players
Bottom Line

A great bat that is best for intermediate players, and sturdy enough to use on hard tennis balls.

Pros

Built with a short handle and thick edges. Good quality wood. Very durable and lasts a long time. Reviewers were pleased with the weight.

Cons

Some reviewers said they would not recommend using on a leather ball.

Skihi Kids Kashmir Willow Cricket Bat
Skihi
Kids Kashmir Willow Cricket Bat
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Best for Kids
Bottom Line

A reliable and fairly inexpensive option for those looking for a cricket bat for their children to use and learn the sport on.

Pros

Lightweight and durable build. Comes with a carrying bag. Has thick edges and good balance. Can be used on hard balls.

Cons

Does not come in adult sizes.

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BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing, and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers. We only make money if you purchase a product through our links, and all opinions about the products are our own. About BestReviews  
BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing, and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers. We buy all products with our own funds, and we never accept free products from manufacturers.About BestReviews 
HOW WE TESTED

We recommend these products based on an intensive research process that's designed to cut through the noise and find the top products in this space. Guided by experts, we spend hours looking into the factors that matter, to bring you these selections.

30
Models
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76
Consumers
Consulted
8
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Researched
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Buying guide for Best cricket bats

Any good sportsperson knows that the right gear is vital to both individual and team performance. Although cricket bats look like simple pieces of equipment, they can vary considerably.

A poor choice means you end up with an awkward lump of wood in your hands that distracts you from the game. The best have tremendous balance and soon become like a natural extension of your arm, so you can give all your focus to the bowler and the shot you’re going to play.

Here at BestReviews, we’ve put together an in-depth review of the vast array of modern cricket bats to help you make the right choice, whether that’s a cricket bat for a bit of fun in the park, something for the keen amateur club player, or one designed for professional matches. Our recommendations cover a variety of models for leisure and more serious play, all of them very affordable. The following cricket bat buying guide looks at the differences in detail.

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Never leave your cricket bat outside when you’re not actively playing. Sunlight and rain will damage the wood fibers. Store the bat in a cool, dry place indoors.

Key considerations

Broadly speaking cricket bats can be separated into three groups: children’s, leisure and youth, and match play

Children’s

Children’s cricket bats are usually made of plastic, high-density foam, or a softwood like pine. That’s okay because all they’re going to hit is a tennis ball or something similar. These cricket bats are usually sized to suit specific age ranges, such as six- to eight-year-olds, for example, and conveniently often come as a set with a ball and wickets. Spend a few bucks and you’ve got something that’s great for family fun in the backyard.

Leisure and youth

These cricket bats are designed for playing with a tennis ball or softball, but their basic construction is the same as that of a bat for match play. Though these bats are usually made to a good standard, they aren’t designed to take the pounding of a real cricket ball, which is harder and heavier than a baseball and can be traveling at up to 90 miles per hour!

A willow or cane handle (cane is light but has tremendous linear strength) is bound with twine and may have a rubber sleeve for grip. The handle is spliced into the top center of a blade made sometimes of softwood but more often of Kashmir willow. The blade’s top corners are called the shoulders and the bottom is called the toe. 

Match play

Construction style for these bats is the same as for those above, but while cheaper bats are made from Kashmir willow, the best are made from English willow. The difference between the two types of willow is botanical rather than geographical.

English willow is fairly light yet dense enough to resist repeated high-speed impacts. It also has a degree of natural shock resistance that makes it better for controlling shots. The majority of the best cricket bats are made with English willow.

English willow can grow in several countries, but it doesn’t do well in the dry heat of India and Pakistan, which is where the majority of cricket bats are made (a small number of mostly high-end models are made in the UK, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand). In India and Pakistan, the local Kashmir willow doesn’t need to be imported, so it’s considerably cheaper.

Kashmir willow bats are lighter than English willow bats, though not every player wants that. They often don’t have quite the resilience. However, we wouldn’t want to give the impression there’s anything wrong with them. There are some very well made Kashmir willow cricket bats around, and they’re an excellent option for amateur players. Indeed, some pros prefer Kashmir willow bats.

Grade and grains

Grade: A willow grading system has been used for many years, with Grade 1+ (or Grade A) the highest, down to Grade 4. It’s useful when comparing cricket bats from the same maker, but the problem is there is no agreed-upon international standard. Two individuals might put different grades on the same piece of wood. As a result, some makers don’t use the system.

Grains: Blades can also be rated for grains. The more visible grains, the denser the wood (it comes from an older tree). It certainly makes for a great-looking cricket bat, and in the past it often meant better performance. Today, advanced shaping has a greater impact on performance, as does the skill of the maker (many bats are still handmade).

Size and weight

Size: If you’re playing cricket for fun, you just want something that’s comfortable, but if you’re playing seriously — even at the amateur club level — there are rules governing the size of the cricket bat. Oversize bats aren’t uncommon, but they’re illegal for match play.

  • Length: Maximum length must not exceed 38 inches, though you’d have to be very tall to need one that long. Most cricket bats are around 35 inches long. Interestingly, there are no rules governing the proportion of handle to blade length. Most standard cricket bats are called “short handle,” but Twenty20 cricket bats (a fast and aggressive form of the sport) tend to have long handles because they can deliver more power, though at the loss of some finesse.

  • Width: The width can be no more than 4.25 inches

  • Thickness: The maximum thickness is 2.64 inches, with edges no more than 1.56 inches.
     

Weight: There are no limits on weight, though cricket bats usually weigh between 2.5 and 3 pounds. Although to some extent it depends on physique, the heavier the bat, the more power you can develop, but it will tire you more quickly. There’s no easy way to judge which bat will suit you best, and it’s something that might change as your game develops. That said, there isn’t any disadvantage to starting with a light bat and eventually increasing the weight if you want to.

Likewise, much is made of the profile (high, mid, or low), which affects how the weight is distributed. You can only develop a preference over time, so there’s no point starting with something radical just because a famous cricketer uses a bat like that. Start with a mid or mid/low blade, and maybe change it as your skill develops.

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Did you know?
Some manufacturers offer preconditioned bats that are claimed to be “ready to play.” Many experts still suggest a period of knocking in before they’re right for competitive matches.
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Accessories

Gloves: Kookaburra Batting Gloves
If you play cricket with the proper hard leather ball, batting gloves are essential. Without them you could easily break a finger. This pair comes from one of the world’s best manufacturers of cricket gear, combining great flexibility with a high level of protection and excellent comfort.

Helmet: As the game got faster, the cricket helmet became another must-have safety product. Shrey is one of the leading makers of helmets.

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Did you know?
Early cricket bats looked very much like hockey sticks. The design used today was introduced in 1880 by Englishman Charles Richardson, a railway engineer.
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Cricket bat prices

Inexpensive: The cheapest cricket bats are children’s toys and can be found for $10 or $15. If you want a real cricket bat, those made to use with softballs and tennis balls start at around $35. These are perfectly good for younger players who are starting to learn the game and for fun games in the park.

Mid-range: Keen amateurs who want to play regular club cricket need to spend somewhere between $60 and $120 for a bat. You start to find English willow cricket bats at the upper end of this range.

Expensive: The finest-quality cricket bats cost $200 and up. Those used by professionals who play at the international level can be as much as $500.

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Training cricket bats come in a variety of shapes and sizes, some of them quite unusual, and are designed to improve specific skills. They aren’t used to play matches.

FAQ

Q. How long does a cricket bat last?
A. There are numerous factors, including the quality of the bat and how often and how hard you hit the ball. Occasional players may use the same bat for decades. Regular amateur players should expect one to last between 1,000 and 1,500 runs, which usually means several years. Professionals can go through half a dozen bats per season.

Q. Do I need to do anything to look after my cricket bat?
A. To some extent, it depends on the manufacturing process. It’s important to read the maker’s instructions if you want to get maximum use from your bat. That said, the periodic application of linseed oil helps preserve the natural suppleness of a wooden cricket bat.

Good-quality bats usually benefit from a period of “knocking in.” An old cricket ball or wooden mallet is used to strike the bat all over in order to compress the wood fibers and harden the surface, thus increasing its durability. The impacts are nowhere near as severe as when the bat is actually hit with a ball during play, so no damage is done to the bat. Tennis ball cricket bats don’t need to be prepared this way because they’re never meant to hit a hard match ball.

Q. What is an anti-scuff sheet?
A. Also called anti-scuff facing, it’s a protective polyurethane film. It can be applied to the edges or striking surface of the bat to help prevent cracking and splits. Some players use it as a substitute for going through the laborious process of knocking in a bat, though for maximum durability it should be applied after this has been done.

The anti-scuff sheet can be moderately effective when used for a repair, if a bat has been poorly looked after and has started to split, but only at the amateur level. There’s no rule preventing its use in matches, though professionals tend not to. For them, a bat needs to be in perfect condition or they’ll change it.

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