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Choosing the best cricket pads can be an onerous, yet important task. Our guide has done the leg work for you and describes some of the best and some of the lightest cricket pads on the market in terms of important features.
Best Cricket Batting Pads Available in the Market
Gray-Nicolls Legend Batting Pads 2018
A brand that is synonymous with high quality cricket gear. These pads are excellent quality, especially in the leg straps. They feel robust and are not oversized which I have found with other cricket batting pads in the past. Really comfortable to wear as they mould to your leg easily. There is enough padding on the back to make them sturdy and make you feel confident whilst batting. As a bonus, I found them easy to wipe clean after training and matches without the colour fading.Gunn & Moore Original Limited Edition Batting Pad
These pads do look the part with their almost complete white appearance. Even the traditional green and blue of the Gunn and Moore logo is all white! The top hat of the pads is stitched in which I found made a huge difference to running whilst wearing them. The description boasts a ‘knee locator’ which is a brilliant feature. Part of the padding has a gap for your kneecap to sit in. This makes them feel incredibly secure and makes it much easier to move around whilst wearing them. Apparently, they weigh over 2Kg but after a couple of deliveries you hardly notice that you’re wearing pads at all.
Adidas Adipure Cricket Batting Pads/Leg Guards, Small Mens, Right-Handed
Adidas has become more of a household name in cricket over recent years and is being used more and more by leading professionals. These pads do the job but are not the best on the market. They feel thin to wear and the top strap doesn’t feel as good quality as the other, wider straps. The padding on the outside edge of the pads is very well constructed and does wrap around your leg nicely. They are easy to run in and offer good protection from impact but don’t feel like high enough quality for the price range.
New Balance DC 580 Batting Pads
Like Adidas, New Balance are making strides in the cricketing world and have produced a nice pair of batting pads. They have a distinctive appearance with one solid piece of foam down the centre which is vastly different to traditional pads with multiple lengths of cane. This doesn’t affect the protection offered, however. With these pads, there is a lack of padding on the back which means they need fastening fairly tightly to wrap them around your legs. Other pads have thicker padding which supports your leg and wraps more naturally.
Newbery Cricket Axe Batting Pads
These batting pads look the part and have an unusual finish to the top hat section. The round stitching helps maintain the narrow, slimmer finish which makes them very easy to run in. What is good is the additional padding around the ankle area. This is usually overlooked but this extra padding adds confidence when facing quicker, fuller bowling. The side panels are not as large as some other batting pads, but you still feel confident when wearing them. They wrap nicely around your leg which is a feature that Newbery boast of in the description. It certainly delivers!
KOOKABURRA Unisex’s Rapid 4.1 Batting Pads
Having a cut out for your knee is a nice feature of these pads and adds extra comfort to them. When worn for a longer period, thanks to this knee bolster, they still feel secure and don’t move around much. The strap around the knee is a little on the thin side and it is best to not fasten it too tightly. The extra padding around the top of the pad is great and gives you more confidence against quicker, more bouncy bowlers. The padding along the shin area is good and protects against the high impact of the ball. The three-piece knee roll gives these pads a more modern feel alongside the more traditional appearance of the shin area.CW MATCH Batting Leg Guards Cricket Batting Leg Protector Pads
These batting legguards are definitely designed to last rather than to look the part. These pads are ideal for a junior club kit bag as they are durable and feel very solid. They do look heavy, but they are surprisingly light. They are ambidextrous in design so there isn’t a noticeable piece of padding around the edges of the pads, rather a more uniform, rounded finish. The straps are good quality and the foam cushioning around the back feels good. There is a lack of padding around the top flap of the pads, so it is a good idea to encourage juniors to wear a good quality thigh pad. Other pads are better quality and better looking, but if you are building up a kit bag then these are a great addition.
Lightest Batting Pads
Some manufacturers have focused their efforts on producing pads which have lightweight construction, and slightly different in their design. Listed below are some of the lightest batting pads available now for excellent protection.
SG Proflex Light Weight Cricket Batting Leg Guard Pads
These batting legguards can be worn by left and right-handed batters due to their moulded design. The majority of these pad’s extra protection is foam based and they do not feature cane supports like other pads do. They look very much like a pair of wicketkeeping pads as they only have 2 straps rather than the traditional three. Also, the top flap above the knee roll is shorter than most other pads which adds to the lightweight nature of these pads. They are listed as only weighing 1.5Kg, but they feel much lighter than this due to the lightweight construction. When worn for long periods of time they are hardly noticeable.Woodworm Cricket iBat Select Premium Batting Pads
These are Woodworm’s premium batting pads and they do not disappoint. They are lightweight due to them being made from condensed foam rather than having cane supports. They boast better ventilation than other pads and this is evident when wearing them for a long training session or match. They are less than a kilogram in weight which is incredible and massively benefits the batter. Running in them isn’t an issue as they are moulded to fit your legs. The side protection is very solid and adds to the robust feel of the pads.
GUNA4|#Gunn & Moore Unisex Adult Mythos 606 Batting Pad
An excellent pair of cricket batting pads from Gunn and Moore which ooze quality. It is noticeable how wide the vertical panels are compared to more traditional pads. They are lightweight but not as light as the SG Proflex pads. These weigh in at only 2Kg which is great when you are using them for a sustained period. The central panel on the back to support your shin is a great addition alongside the knee locator. Because of these, the straps do not need to be over tightened as they already fit snuggly and comfortably.The Most Important Features of Cricket Pads
As with all cricket purchases, there are important features to consider and be aware of.
Here are the most important features of batting pads.
Material
Batting pads were made of leather which made them both expensive and difficult to maintain. Modern pads are made up of PVC style material which is incredibly durable and long lasting. It is also easy to wipe clean after use. The amount of foam padding is worth checking out. This is the part that protects you from impact but also makes the pads comfortable to wear. There is a cross over at the moment between cane supports and compressed foam. Both protect well but the foam offers a lighter batting pad. The cane supports are stronger but make the pads slightly heavier. There’s also low density foam and high density foam padding structures as well.
Design
Interestingly, there are no restrictions on the actual design of cricket batting pads. The majority of cricket brands produce batting pads which are very similar in appearance. They all tend to have vertical panels down the length of the pads with a knee roll section featuring horizontal panels. Some brands like Puma, changed the appearance slightly by featuring fewer vertical panels along the shin section and by not having an obvious knee roll. As materials have evolved, so have the slight differences in design and it is now more possible to identify a brand based on its cricket batting pads. Velcro straps are also often featured on batting legguards.
Size
Probably the most important part of buying a pair of batting pads. If you don’t have a comfortable fit, it doesn’t matter who made them or what they look like. As a rule of thumb, measure from your knee down to your instep. This is the measurement you need to use when ordering online. Shopping in a cricket store means you can try on multiple pairs of pads to find the best fit for you. Your knee should fit directly behind the knee role and (if the pads have one) in the specially shaped gap on the back of the batting pad. When buying batting pads, it is obvious very quickly if you have the correct size of not.
Brand
Some people prefer one brand and stick with it. Other people switch brands when buying cricket equipment. There are some brands which are synonymous with cricket including Gunn and Moore, Gray Nicolls and Kookaburra. These have been around for decades and are well established and trusted. Other brands are newer to the market but are being used by many high-profile cricketers. New Balance and Adidas are two such brands which are established sports brands in their own rights but are relatively new in cricket. Shopping around and doing your research will unearth other brands which are producing high quality cricket pads. Watching professional games will enable you to spot brands being used at the elite level.
Price
Like most things in the world, you get what you pay for with these batting legguards. Cheaper pads offer lower quality protection and feel compared to some of the more expensive brands of safety equipment. This should not be confused with, expensive is the best as this is certainly not the case. Some $40 – $60 pads perform just as well as pads which are double that price. What is important is to set a budget and stick to it. If you are a midweek cricketer who plays once a month then you don’t need to be spending 100s of pounds on cricket batting pads.
Final Thoughts on Batting Pads
It is important to choose the best cricket pads for you and your budget. Choosing the best pads, you can, which fit you the best are the two most important criteria to follow. Research brands and materials and don’t be afraid to try on multiple pairs until you find the cricket equipment that is right for you.
If you found what you are looking for, you have to also make sure that you wear your brand new batting pads properly.
