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[gihanrat]

As someone who has used only English willow bats, I was just wondering what the collective experience of the forumites have been with adult sized Kashmir willow cricket bats.

Several plus points of Kasmir willow that I can see - cost, not requiring much (if any) knocking in or oiling, doing your bit for sustainability 9feel free to add). Obviously several negatives as well including weight for equivalent sized bat profile, and reputation as a cheaper alternative

Any outstanding performing bats that have made it to outdoor hard ball match use? Any that rival your English willow bats?

How much did you pay for your wonder KW bat, and how old is it? How long did it last?

[Jimbo]

Why wouldn't Kashmir willow need knocked in or oiled?

[gihanrat]

@Jimbo - there is a lot of conflicting advice out there, several people have said they don't bother knocking in their KW bats - firstly wood is harder than EW sapwood "off the bat", and secondly, they probably feel due to the cheap nature of some KW bats, they don't mind surface cracks, etc. Many come with some kind of front sheet fitted as well (sometimes cloth-like faces with even painted grains on some cheap-end KW bats) and again due to people not caring so much about longevity, may not bother, esp those going for occ recreational cricket matches during the season or just knockabout in the nets.

Happy to be corrected if this is wrong  - I'm sure you can knock in these bats +/- oil them just like EW bats - do you get the KW bats opening up like you do with EW bats with extensive prep upfront though? Interested to hear thoughts....

[mo_town]

Yes KW bats also need to be oiled and knocked just like EW bats. The biggest point to consider is the durability. KW can be brittle, especially in light/medium weight bats which are overdried.