How To Knock A Cricket Bat In

Learning how to knock a cricket bat will maintain the quality of your bat. Knocking a cricket bat means to oil it with linseed oil before striking the edges and hitting area of the bat with a rounded wooden mallet to compress the soft wood to make it stronger during play.

To knock a cricket bat in, you will need:

• Linseed oil
• Cricket bat mallet
• Clean, soft cloth

1. Apply oil to cricket bat. Use a damp cloth to wipe surface dirt off the cricket bat. Dry the bat completely with a clean cloth before applying the linseed oil. Oiling the cricket bat will help keep moisture in the wood and keep it from getting brittle and cracking during play. Give all exposed wood an even coat of linseed oil and let it dry completely. Apply an additional three coats of oil to the hitting area's front and back (the area between the toe and the following six inches of the bat). Let the oil dry overnight.
2. Knocking the bat edges. Begin with gentle knocks on the rounded edge and move to heavy knocks to compress edges. Do not hit the bat edges straight on; instead, hit the edges at a 45 degree angle. This will protect the edges from damage by the ball during play.
3. Knock the bat. Hold the blade of the bat firmly in one hand and start knocking the hitting area with gentle knocks and work up to heavy knocks. Firmly knock both front and back of the cricket bat’s hitting area until the willow wood is thoroughly compressed.

Tips & Warnings:

• When oiling the bat, do not apply oil to any decals to avoid loosening or removing them from the bat. A correctly knocked cricket bat will resist damage from a ball during play.
• Do not over-oil the bat to avoid making the soft wood dull, unresponsive or rotten.