English Willow Cricket Bat, The cricket bat is one of the most essential pieces of equipment in your kit bag, so picking the right bat is key to your success as a batsman. Luckily, Cricket shop eu has a huge range of cricket bats available in stock right now – we are official stockists of Gunn and Moore, DSC, Gray Nicolls, New Balance, Adidas, and Kookaburra cricket bats. Cricket bats are generally made from willow (salix caerulea) which is one of the softest kinds of wood available in the world. Every piece of wood in your home, is likely to be much harder, stronger and tougher than the wood that makes cricket bat willow. Huge downward pressure is applied mechanically to the face and edges of the bat by running it beneath a roller that compresses the fibres together, strengthening the wood.