Kookaburra Big Kahuna Cricket Bat

havinng owned the bat for the last two seasons and using it almost religiously in this time i feel my review is a good benchmark for looking into buying this cricket bat. The new kahuna cricket bat was realeased prior to the summer o 2008. The kahuna range is very high profile within cricket with pro players using the range such as Australian captain Ricky ponting.

I was drawn to the big kahuna by the promise of a big middle and a huge ...
...and pickup, i was skeptical at first as it was a rather cheap price of £89.99 which for a big bat is bargain. When the bat arrived i was amazed at the sheer size of the blade itself , people were even commenting on the thickness of the edges and middle. The bat weighed in at 2 pounds and 11 ounzes which is alot of weight to throw around in a bat but when you picked it up it was not a struggle so the intial pickup was very nice. In terms of willow ... more

havinng owned the bat for the last two seasons and using it almost religiously in this time i feel my review is a good benchmark for looking into buying this cricket bat. The new kahuna cricket bat was realeased prior to the summer o 2008. The kahuna range is very high profile within cricket with pro players using the range such as Australian captain Ricky ponting.

I was drawn to the big kahuna by the promise of a big middle and a huge profile on the bat that will still have great handling and pickup, i was skeptical at first as it was a rather cheap price of £89.99 which for a big bat is bargain. When the bat arrived i was amazed at the sheer size of the blade itself , people were even commenting on the thickness of the edges and middle. The bat weighed in at 2 pounds and 11 ounzes which is alot of weight to throw around in a bat but when you picked it up it was not a struggle so the intial pickup was very nice. In terms of willow quality the bat was grade 2 english willow and my personal one had about 10 straight graines down the face of bat. Also my attention was drawn to the striking graphics on the bat, a mix of green and black with silky deisigns really make the bat look professional and stand out from the ordinary club bat.

I would highly recommend to prepair the bat intensivly before you go anywhere near the middle of a cricket ground. The middle was very soft and needed a lot of knocking in with a cricket mallet plus oiling it after every season and that start of a season is essential to treat the wood and keep it in good condition. Even a scuff sheat and tape down the edges will help the bat as it is not desighned to hit the ball lightly!

Now to most important part, how the Big Kahuna performs when it matters, in a cricket match. I play a high leval of club cricket and am the opening batsman so my bat needed really to stand up to anything that was thrown at it. Initially the bat took some time to get use, the large and rather low middle led to alot of miss timed drives and hooks which just went straight in the air to fielders. Also the weight is very difficult to get use to in the first 5 times you use this bat, it feels alot different to a usual short handle bat so do not expect to be getting 100s the first few times you strole out to bat! HOwever once occustumed to the bat it really can show class, i found that when hit out of the middle the bat takes overs, it can produce some massive sixes and hard hit fours. A note on this was that the grip and handle took away all feeling when hitting these shot so doing there job excellently. A down point on the stroke play was the finesse of the bat really is not there, you can not direct the ball as such and playing fine cats and elegent cover drives are difficult with the bat as the wieght can take over when following through with a shot.

I managed to get 2 years of play out of this bat which was slightly disapointing. Surface cracks were starting to appear and the toe and edges were very worn, also when used the trademark middle now made a very dull thud when being used. However it did play alot of games and while being not the most acute of bats certainly did create some woderfull moments. As far as recommendiations go it is difficult, mainly because for all round players who really rely on the bat then the kahuna will come up short with all round play and willow quality. Perhaps if you come in late down the order and like to really swing through the ball then this is the cricket bat of your dreams. I will not be getting a new kahuna for the reasons stated above but this still is a good bat with a alot of plus points.
 

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