Knocking in, and why the boring hour matters

Nobody enjoys this bit. You have a new bat, the season starts in a fortnight, and somebody is telling you to sit in the garage hitting it with a hammer for six hours. It is still the difference between a bat that lasts three seasons and one that cracks in its second week.

What it is doing

Gray-Nicolls, who have been making bats for a very long time, put the mechanism plainly: knocking in compresses the fibres in the willow and helps prevent cracking, especially against a new ball. The wood arrives soft. You are hardening the surface so that a cricket ball at pace meets something ready for it.

How long

Their own guidance is at least four to six hours, gradually, on the face and the edges. Cricket Direct says a minimum of six hours with the force increased progressively through the process. Take the higher number. Nobody has ever regretted an extra hour, and this is not a job that benefits from enthusiasm early on.

There is a decent test for when the face is done. Gray-Nicolls says the face is complete when the mallet no longer leaves marks on it.

How to do it

• Use a proper bat mallet. An old ball in a sock will work and it is less consistent and harder on your arm.
• Start light on the face and work up over time. Do not swing at it from the first minute.
• Do not hit the edges or the toe directly. Flick the edges at about forty five degrees, so you are copying the glancing blow the bat gets in an innings.
• Do not hit the back of the bat, and do not go above the splice, which is the triangular join where the handle enters the blade.
• The edges are the most vulnerable part of the bat and the part everybody neglects, so give them more time than feels reasonable.

Oil, sparingly

A thin coat of raw linseed oil keeps moisture in the willow so it does not dry out and crack. Apply it with a soft cloth to the face and the edges, avoid the splice, leave it overnight and wipe off what is left. Cricket Direct suggests at least three times a season.

Both sources say the same thing about the amount, so it is worth repeating: do not over-oil. Too much makes the willow soft and takes performance out of the bat. If in doubt, less.

Where the advice splits

On storage the two disagree, and it is worth knowing which one you are following. Cricket Direct suggests a cool dry place such as a shed or garage, on the basis that a little moisture in the air is good for the wood. Gray-Nicolls says never a car boot, never a shed, never near a radiator, and store it indoors.

We would follow the people who make the bats. A British garage in February is not a stable environment, and the failure you get from a bat that has dried out is a worse failure than the one you are trying to avoid.

Pre-prepared bats

Most makers now sell bats described as pre-prepared or partially knocked in, which saves time and does not replace the job. Cricket Direct's guidance is blunt about it: unless the bat is prepared, do not take it into a game or a session, and even then some knocking in is still recommended.

Last thing, and both sources say it. No bat lasts forever, and there is no guaranteed working life. Every ball that finds the toe or the edge is a chance to end it. Preparation buys you seasons, and it does not buy you immortality.