Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
A CRICKET BAMBOOM
Bamboo could replace willow for cricket bats
BAMBOO could be about to replace willow as the material of choice for cricket bat manufacturers.
Cambridge University researchers have developed a prototype bamboo bat with a larger sweet spot than a traditional willow version.
The bat is also stronger and would be more sustainable and cheaper to make.
The study in the Journal of Sports Engineering and Technology reported that bamboo is 22% stiffer than willow, increasing the ball’s speed off the bat.
Researchers said the sweet spot on their prototype performed 19% better than that on a willow bat.
Dr Darshil Shah, of Cambridge’s Centre for
Natural Material Innovation, said: “The sweet spot on a bamboo bat makes it much easier to hit a four off a yorker... but it’s exciting for all kinds of strokes.”
Dr Shah, a former member of Thai
land’s under-19 national cricket team, added: “We’d just need to adjust our technique to make the most of it.”
Players using bamboo bats would not feel any more vibration than with a willow bat, the study says.
It also notes that there is a shortage of good-quality willow, which takes up to 15 years to mature.
The maturing age of moso bamboo is five to six years and it grows abundantly in China, south-east Asia and South America.
Dr Shah said: “Bamboo is a grass, not a wood, so there would need to be discussions with the MCC.
“But we think... a bamboo bat would be within the spirit of the game because it’s a plant-based material.”
The researchers now hope to enter discussions with the sport’s governing bodies and leading bat manufacturers.