The 12 Bats of Christmas - Warsop Inspire 152

Warsop Stebbing have been hand making cricket bats since 1870 so if you want someone with experience then choosing a brand that have produced over ¼ million bats, including one for the great W.G. Grace, is going to be a good choice.

Based in the heart of Essex they are in prime position to pick from the premium  willow supplier in the world, right on their doorstep. The attention to detail that comes from the decades of experience is evident in how they work with the willow, for example, timber with a close strong grain on the right will be used for a right handed bat, avoiding splits on outside edging that might otherwise occur.

We have chosen the range topping Inspire 152 bat which benefits from all the special treatment you’d expect from a beautifully handcrafted bat. Out of 100 clefts of wood there might be 1 or 2 good enough to be worthy of being turned into an Inspire 152, and you can choose to have this made into a custom bat made or leave the decisions to the experts by ordering via their website.

The shape is modern with nice big edges and a slight concaving to the back of the bat with the high spine stretching all the way through the toe. As you’d expect with a custom bat you can adapt the profile to suit your game with a low, mid or high sweet spot, a choice of round or oval handle available in short, long or super short size. There’s a noticeable difference with the handles Warsop use though and it’s that they make them themselves. Cane is imported from Malaysia to be combined with spliced timber and a pair of rubber inlays (unless you request more) to create your perfect handle.

Once the profile has been shaped the edges of the bat will be ‘boned’ by drawing a hard piece of wood down the edges to roll them and take the sharp edge off before the eye catching red and silver stickers are applied. Then all you have to do is put it to good use.