As we approach the deepest, brightest depths of a kiwi summer, it is time for a minor exploration into Blackcaps bats. Last summer was headlined by BJ Watling, Colin de Grandhomme and Jeet Raval all moving from Kookaburra to SS Ton bats and equipment, which if we want to get super nerdy has now seen these three use the 'SS Ton Vintage Classic Collection' bats branded as Sunridges. Same company and all that, just a slightly slicker appearance and the design is a notable diversion away from the more Asian style. Watling, de Grandhomme and Raval are still the only lads in the Blackcaps Test team using SS Ton and given how the Blackcaps batsmen have generally performed over the past 12 months, there is understandably little turnover.

Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor feel like they have lifetime deals with Gray-Nicolls and Gunn & Moore respectively. Personally, Taylor's not only my favourite batsman forever ever and ever, this GM bat he uses is my favourite bat in this Blackcaps team in terms of design; all black detailing, crisp traditional GM style.

As most cricket folks will know, the world of bats and sponsorships is damn interesting and we have to keep in mind that players may not be using their sponsors willow as we might expect as it's rather easy to put any stickers on any piece of wood. Taylor's got his own signature bat with GM though and that's the equivalent as an NBA player having their own shoe that they have helped design. Taylor's 'Player's Edition Noir' apparently has a long middle and my hunch would be that this design plays into Taylor's world-class cut shot as he is often cutting from close to off-stump and perhaps higher on the bat...

Just a hunch though. Low key, it's been a hefty year for GM considering they picked up Ben Stokes after his off-field issues resulted in him no longer using New Balance. 2019 was nothing but resurgent for Stokes and for sponsors, performing well is crucial, but sprinkle performing well in big moments on top and you've got exactly what sponsors are hoping for. Stokes won a World Cup, played an almighty knock in the Ashes and won some awards as well, which ain't just stacking up wins for Stokes, those are wins for GM and their investment in Stokes.

Interestingly, I can't find anything new about Williamson's collabo with Gray-Nicolls. All the bits and pieces are from last year, which may point to Williamson unleashing some new Gray-Nicolls stuff in the near future. A quick geeze through the Gray-Nicolls sponsored players page highlights that Williamson is one of a few players who has a 'collection' and while I won't hang my hat on this as a super-duper piece of insight; Williamson's the only non-English player with a collection and unquestionably, the best with a collection.

Jonny Bairstow and Ben Foakes apparently have collections, both of whom are wicket-keepers. I reckon Gray-Nicolls are cooking something up with Williamson, so I won't go too deep into this rabbit-hole. Henry Nicholls is also part of the Gray-Nicolls whanau and we also had Daryl Mitchell make his Blackcaps Test debut vs England, scoring 73 in his first innings of Test cricket with a Gray-Nicolls willow.

The rise of New Balance has been rather fascinating, not only in cricket but in the sports world. Kawhi Leonard won an NBA title soon after signing with New Balance, while New Balance have also made major moves into football via sponsoring teams and players. In cricket, New Balance sponsors the South African and England teams, along with a bunch of the world's best players and they recently enjoyed Mitchell Santner cracking his first Test century.

Santner is still joined by Trent Boult as the kiwi Test jokers on the NB roster and as I alluded to last summer, as we move into the bowlers, it's kinda clear that footwear comes first. NB sponsor some of the best batsmen in the world (Steve Smith, Joe Root) and obviously do alright in supporting their batsmen, as they operate primarily as a footwear brand though they do skew towards bowlers.

Santner and Boult bowl in NB kicks, while Tim Southee and Neil Wagner are all about the three stripes. Not too many folks are walking out to the crease with Adidas bats these days and this puts into perspective, the rise of NB as they have not only entered the market as a shoe supplier but are also going hundies with their bats.

Southee and Wagner bowl in Adidas boots and while Adidas may not seem like a notable factor in cricket, many players wear Adidas cricket-specific footwear when bowling or batting. If you aren't a NB player, you are most likely to be rocking Asics or Adidas footwear on the field. Many batsmen for example will have their bat/equipment sponsor, then a different footwear sponsor and if you're a NB athlete you'll have the full package, while high-quality batsmen aren't really into the Adidas bat market.

Another weird thing I found was the emergence of ESCU Sports and their wrist protector. The ESCU Sports wrist guard has been a low key notable presence on some hefty batsmen since appearing to swing into action early in November and while we are used to seeing batsmen wearing guards that look like a DIY construction, these guards are specifically designed to sit above the glove, nice and snug.

Things get funkier when I realised that Auckland Aces batsman Mark Chapman was the/a founder of ESCU Sports. Chapman is 25-years-old, has founded ESCU Sports and successfully rolled out an impressive product, while also sitting on the New Zealand Cricket Players Association as an Associate Director. That's rather amazing for a young lad and if you've read this far, we are all going to be noticing more of these wrist guards now we know what to look for.

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Peace and love 27.