The Cricket Discovery Victory Series Tape Ball Cricket Bat is built for the game most of us actually play: tape ball in the park, on the street, in the sports hall and under lights. Wide blade, thick edges, quick through the air, and no preparation needed before your first game.

Tape ball is not hard-ball cricket with a softer ball — it is its own game, and it asks different things of a bat. The Victory Series is shaped for bat speed and reach rather than for stopping a leather ball, which is why it plays the way it does. Every bat here is individually photographed, so you choose the exact one.

Cricket Discovery Victory Series specifications

What tape ball cricket asks of a bat

A taped tennis ball is light, it skids off concrete and astro, and it swings more than people expect. You do not need a dense blade to survive it, so everything a hard-ball bat carries to stop leather is wasted here. What you want instead is a blade that comes through fast, a wide face for the times the ball skids under your hands, and edges thick enough that a half-middled shot still goes. That is the brief the Victory Series is built to.

Blade width, length and sweet spot

Tape ball bats run wider than the hard-ball laws allow, which is legal in tape ball and is the single biggest reason they are easier to score with. More face means more margin for error against a ball that moves late. A full-length blade adds reach, so you can get out to a wide ball and still hit through the line rather than reaching and chopping.

Handle and grip

The handle is built to stay solid through the shot without deadening the blade, and the grip is designed to hold on in hot hands and damp evenings alike. Want a second grip on top for a thicker feel? Add one above and we will fit it before dispatch.

Tape ball bats and hard ball bats are not interchangeable

This is the question we get asked most in the shop, so it is worth saying plainly. A tape ball bat is not built to face a hard cricket ball and will be damaged quickly if you use it for one. If you play hard-ball cricket you want English willow or Kashmir willow instead. Plenty of players keep one of each — a willow bat for club cricket and a tape ball bat for everything else.

No knocking in required

Unlike English willow, a tape ball bat needs no preparation at all. No linseed oil, no knocking in, no scuff sheet, no drying time, no waiting a fortnight before you can use it. Take the wrapper off and play.

Looking after your tape ball bat

There is almost nothing to do. Keep it dry, store it somewhere that is not damp and not next to a radiator, and never let it near a hard ball. Change the grip when it goes smooth. Done properly a tape ball bat will see you through seasons of park and street cricket.

Who is this bat for?

• Tape ball and tennis ball cricketers who want a proper bat rather than a toy
• Players who want a wide blade and reach for hitting through the line
• Anyone playing street, park, indoor or floodlit tape ball
• Beginners and juniors starting out before moving to hard ball

Buy the Cricket Discovery Victory Series in the UK

Crystal Sports is an independent cricket shop in Luton, Bedfordshire, stocking the Victory Series alongside the wider tape ball bat range. Order online with tracked UK delivery, or visit Unit 2, 200 Dunstable Road, Luton LU4 8JL to pick it up and feel it first.