When it comes to big bats, Tendulkar edges it

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MIKE HUSSEY was only joking when he suggested the greatest batsman of the modern era, India's Sachin Tendulkar, used a bat that was outside the laws of cricket. ''Test cricket is bloody hard work,'' Hussey said. ''Especially when you've got Sachin batting with what looks like a three-metre-wide bat.''

But Hussey's respectful, if slightly envious, observation is not entirely baseless or without precedent. For years viewers have wondered why Tendulkar's bat looked so big.

Is it just that he's such a small-statured fellow? Is it because he has such a good eye that he seems to hit every shot out of the middle? Or is something funny going on? Some laws of cricket are a bit nit-picky. But when it comes to bats, size matters. A lot.

The rules that govern bat dimensions are kept by the Marylebone Cricket Club, as they have been since 1787, and are followed by the ICC and all affiliated organisations. On the length and width of a bat, the MCC's Laws of Cricket state:

(a) The overall length of the bat, when the lower portion of the handle is inserted, shall not be more than 38in/96.5cm;

(b) The width of the bat shall not exceed 4.25in/10.8cm at its widest part;

(c) Permitted coverings, repair material and toe guards, not exceeding their specified thicknesses, may be additional to the dimensions above.

So, does Tendulkar's bat fit the regulations? Short of waiting outside the India dressing room for the coast to clear, running in with tape and taking a measurement, getting the exact numbers is a bit tricky. But suddenly last week a lead appeared and at least something of an explanation.

''I was having lunch two days ago with the guy who makes his bat,'' said cricket-supply guru, Harry Solomons, who owns Kingsgrove Sports Centre, which once employed the Waugh brothers. ''Sachin's bats look wide, but they are regulation width. It's the thick edges that make it look bigger.

''His bats are English willow, with a thick profile, massive edges which he likes, and he also likes his bats to be heavily bowed.'' This refers to the curvature of the face of the bat.

They are also heavy, a result of having to share a full-sized bat with his brother when he was a kid.

''When he was with [previous bat sponsor] MRF his bats were close to three pounds,'' Solomons said. To put that in context, the bat used by 193cm West Indies great Clive Lloyd - who was renowned for using a gigantic heavy bat - weighed 3 pounds, 4 ounces. Tendulkar is 165cm. ''Now he's gone a little bit lighter. But he still likes a big, thick, heavy bat, much heavier than, say, Ponting's bat.'' The bat Tendulkar uses now is 2lb 12oz.

Former Blues player Dom Thornely noticed his former Mumbai Indians teammate polishing the cherries off the ample edges to give the impression that each shot came out of the middle.

''And as the ball gets older and bounces less he tends to change bats to one that has a sweet spot lower down,'' Thornely said. ''It makes perfect sense.''

It's not easy getting the facts about Tendulkar's bats because just about everyone claims they are the great man's official supplier.

''A lot of manufacturers give him handmade bats because it looks good for them to say they made a bat for Tendulkar,'' Solomons said. ''He gets inundated - and then gives them away to poor kids.''

For the record, Tendulkar signed a deal with adidas last year. His bats are made by the SG factory in India. The bats are available in Australia, known as the Sachin Tendulkar Master Blaster Elite and retail for about $650.

It's the same dimensions, Solomons swears, but a bit lighter and thinner.