Gray-Nicolls Maax 5* Cricket Bat

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Think cricket bats, think Gray-Nicolls. There’s over 150 years of heritage behind every Gray-Nicolls bat, and you can see it as soon as you pick one up. Every curve and contour is finessed to perfection by their master batmakers, following the traditions passed on through generations of experts of the craft.

Those traditions go all the way back to the late 1800s, when HJ Gray and LJ Nicolls were separately building reputations as two of the best bat brands of the time – Gray based in Cambridge, Nicolls in Robertsbridge, Sussex. More than half a century later, Gray’s descendants acquired the by-then internationally established Nicolls business and joined the two names together. Ever since, Gray-Nicolls and their famous logo have been a mark of quality respected around the world.

Their batmaking operation remains based in Robertsbridge, while factories in Australia and India serve the huge markets in Oceania and the subcontinent. The starting point for any Gray-Nics bat, though, is always England: all the English willow they use comes from their own exclusive plantations dotted around Hampshire. And wherever it’s made, every single bat is crafted using the same techniques, with the same attention to detail that makes Gray-Nicolls bats such a joy to play with.

The Gray-Nicolls strapline is “Where tradition meets innovation”. The tradition is clear, and the innovation becomes evident when you look back on the bats they’ve produced over the years. Take the Scoop, for example. Arguably cricket’s most iconic bat ever, it became a phenomenon following its introduction in the 70s and set the trend for the concaving and clever weight distribution we see on bats to this day. Gray-Nics are also responsible for the eye-catching colours seen on many bats in the modern game – they were the first batmaker to use coloured stickers, with their distinctive red branding adding an unmistakable touch of class to every blade.