Daniel Vettori feels bat size checks make no difference, wishes the drill was there during his time
Daniel Vettori feels that the checks of bat sizes on the ground in the Indian Premier League 2025 are not making a difference as umpires do the drill in the dressing room. Vettori wished that the parameter of checking the bats was in place when he was playing in his days.
Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach Daniel Vettori feels that the bat checks in the Indian Premier League don't make any difference, and wished the parameters were in place during his time. The umpires have been checking the sizes of bats of players on the field in IPL 2025 with a gauge. Recently, Anrich Nortje and Sunil Narine's bats failed the gauge.
"I wish they'd checked the bats when I was playing," Vettori said during SRH's press conference before their match against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium. Vettori opined that the tests don't make any difference, as the umpires usually visit the dressing rooms to check the bats.
"No, I don't think it makes any difference. The guys get tested regularly. The umpires go through the dressing rooms a lot of the time, so (the) guys know that their bats are compliant, so it's just a quick one second, and everyone moves on. "It'll reset anyone trying to have a bigger bat, but it's pretty easy to get your bat through that gauge," he added.
Vettori feels that the bat sizes are not going to change and conceded that these discussions don't take place in the SRH camp. "Not really. I suppose the way that bats have been able to get bigger without an increase in weight, that's a skill (to be credited) to the bat manufacturers and a demand for what batting groups or batters want these days," he said.
"It's just part of the game, part of the evolution. Everyone seems to enjoy sixes and fours, so I don't think we're going to get a reduction in bat size, and it doesn't really worry me," he added.
Vettori looking forward to Ishan's knowledge ahead of MI clash
Meanwhile, the former New Zealander has said that he would look forward to tapping into the knowledge from Ishan Kishan, who was with the Mumbai Indians for a number of years. "It would be foolish not to tap into some of that knowledge and understanding around the Mumbai mentality and how they deal with certain situations, and also understanding the surface, how it plays, the dew factor, all those little things," he said.
"He has a wealth of knowledge for me and the rest of the coaches for this time, but mainly because he's a fantastic player," he added.