LIFE ESTIMATION OF A PRE-CRACKED CRICKET BAT

Abstract

Cricket is a fascinating game that is played in many countries professionally. The cricket bat is equipment which is used to strike the ball. The ball is made up of leather whereas the bat is made of willow wood. The performance and the life of a bat are hampered in presence of a crack as the crack propagates leading to failure. In this paper, a Kashmir willow bat with a pre-existing crack in the sweet spot region is analyzed to predict its life by conducting experiments for a pre-calculated impact load. A steel hammer is used as an impact tool. These experiments are conducted for a defensive shot only where the bat is treated has a cantilever beam. The ball speed considered is 130 km/hr. at the point of release. During the experiment, the crack in the sweet spot region propagated till the 46^th shot where the bat chipped off in the crack zone indicating failure. Using the experimental data the life of the bat is estimated as 50 shots theoretically. These results are validated by simulating in ANSYS. The estimated life of the bat is based on steel on wood impact. As the effect of steel on wood impact formation of dents on the bat is seen during the tests thereby damaging bat. To reduce this effect a medium needs to be introduced on the surface of the bat during the test to simulate real time scenario that is a ball on bat impact so has to predict its equivalent life.