If you are an amateur in cricket and are planning to make a career in this sport, you might need some sports equipment for practice. There are some basic pieces of equipment you must need in your kit while going for cricket practice. 

The majority of equipment is designed to prevent injuries to the batsman. The sudden death of the cricketer Phillp Hughes in 2014, after he got struck on the head by a cricket ball, put the safety of this game in the spotlight. The game is not risky, and the number of injuries is far less than football and rugby—but the injuries that happen occasionally could be as fatal as the ones that happened to Hughes.

If you are looking for a “sporting goods storeâ€, you must make a list of essential sports gear to buy. And the priority must be given to the safety gears. If you are wondering about the necessary equipment required for this sport, this article will list the equipment to play this game safely and enjoy every moment.

Here are the essential pieces of equipment you need to play cricket safely.

Helmet

This is the most important part of the safety gear. Like many other games where there are chances of head injuries, one must wear a helmet. In cricket, the players who wear helmets are the batsmen and wicket-keeper. These are the people who have the highest chances of getting hit by the ball. The cricket ball is a very hard one, and if you get hit by the ball in critical places, you could sustain major injuries. 

There are many cases of spectators getting hit by the ball and sustaining severe injuries. The helmet is, without doubt, the first and most important safety equipment in cricket.

These helmets go through rigorous quality checks and analysis before the authorities approve them.

Shin Pads

The next most important safety item is the leg pads. As said earlier, the cricket ball is as hard as a brick, and when it hits someone with high intensity, it will cause severe injuries to the body. You can buy these safety gear from a “sporting goods storeâ€.

These pads are to protect your legs (shin) from the ball. If you know about the game, there are many ways to dismiss the batsman, and two of them are when the bowler hits the wicket with the ball or hits the batsman’s leg, which is directly aligned to the wicket (Leg before wicket). And the bowler will always try these two methods to dismiss the batsman, and the ball will definitely hit the shin of the batsman. The only way to avoid injuries is to wear a leg pad (preferably on both legs).

Abdo guard

It is also essential to wear an Abdo guard to protect your groin if you think it is necessary (JK). Though this gear is a part of many pranks, you cannot ignore the importance of this safety gear. Injuries to the groin may cause nausea, damage to nerves, and constant pain for hours. It may bring down your performance and may fail your team.

Thigh pads

These pads are as important as the shin pads. Though some cricketers don’t wear this pad by citing a decrease in their running speed or other excuses—they must wear at least one pad on the thing facing the bowler.

Some of the other important safety pieces of equipment are:

• Chestguard
• Armguard
• Gloves