Whenever I go to play cricket, I see that the majority of cricket bats have a joint below the handle of the bat. I notice that the handle and blade of the bat are different things joined together.
Then I started thinking about why the majority of cricket bats are made of two different parts. I did lots of research on that. I thought that the same question would arise in your mind.
Then, why not make a separate blog post on this? So in today's blog, I am going to share with you the real reasons why cricket bats are made in two pieces.
So without wasting your valuable time let's begin.
Why cricket bats are made in two pieces?
As you know, the two different parts of the bat are the handle and the blade. When we hit a ball with the bat we got a strong vibration in our hand. The bat's handle is designed in such a way as to minimize that vibration. Which eventually helps us to hit proper cricket shots.
It also provides flexibility and customisation to players to choose the handle and blade of the bat according to their style and comfort.
But, do you know what the real function of the handle and blade of the bat is?
Also read:
Functions of handle and blade
Let's start with the blade, whenever we hit the ball with a bat. The ball comes into contact with the blade of the bat. And the speed of the ball is very high which gives a strong blow to the entire bat.
Now, the blade absorbs the impact of the ball which protects it from breaking down. As a result, the ball goes forward at a high speed. But, where? In which direction will the ball go?
Here the handle has a main role. Handle helps to give the right direction to the ball. It transfers power from our hand's muscles to the blade of the bat. Which ultimately helps us to hit the best cricket shots without losing balance.
Four reasons why the handle and the blade are made differently
As we know, most cricket bats are made with two different parts. But what is the reason behind making these two parts different? Why isn't a bat made with a single piece of willow?
By the way, I am covering the four main reasons why they are made different. They are here:
1) Less material wastage
The willow used in making cricket bats is quite expensive. And if we use only a single piece in making a bat there are lots of materials going to waste.
As the material is wasted, the cost of the ball will eventually increase and the bat becomes expensive. Because of this, for making handles of bats other willows are used. Which lowers the cost of a cricket bat. we can't use two pieces in making the bat, it will become more expensive.
2) Difficulty in giving shape to the bat
The shape of the cricket bat is very complicated because the bat has a lot of parts such as the face, edges, spine, shoulder, sweet spot, toe, swell, etc,
Using a single piece of willow makes it very difficult to form these shapes. Using this to pieces i.e. the handle and the blade makes the job easier.
3) Absorbs the impact of the stroke
As we have discussed, the handles of the bat are designed to absorb the impacts of the ball.
While making handles, some pieces of rubber are added inside the handle, as a result, the impact of the ball becomes lesser on the hands.
Which eventually lessens the vibration of the bat on hand. And if we use only a single piece for making a bat, we cannot add rubber to the handle.
Which causes strong vibrations in our hands and makes it difficult to play cricket shots.
4) Provides customisation
Because the handle and blade of the bat are made differently, it allows us to choose the best grip according to our style and comfort.
It also helps us to optimize the blade of the bat separately, for specific matches. We have an advantage when our bat's handle breaks or damages in a specific area. In that case, we don't have to change the entire bat. Instead of this, we can change the handle separately.
The same can apply to the blade of the bat too.
Final thoughts
A cricket bat is made in two pieces because it is easier to make, provides us the flexibility to customize and decreases the blow to our hand while playing cricket.
To be honest guys, I spent lots of time researching why are cricket bats made in two pieces? And I hope you will probably get the answer. If you find this post helpful then share it with others
Until then lots of love and thanks!!
