PANJIM: Cricket safety gear needs to be improved in terms of material and design to make it stronger, lighter and weather proof. The helmet design needs upgradation and the material to be used ought to be bullet proof kevlar or graphite fabric and other composite plastics to improve impact attenuation capacity, stressed Dr Mahendra Kudchadkar, orthopaedic surgeon and HoD of Healthway Hospitals, at the 7th World Congress on Science and Medicine in Cricket held in Chandigarh, recently.
The congress which is held every four years - coincided with the Cricket World Cup - was attended by scientists, physical trainers, physios, researchers, doctors and team physicians from all cricket playing nations to discuss strategies to improve performance, nutrition, injuries prevention and treatment and equipment.
Dr Kudchadkar, past president of Indian Foot and Ankle Society, delivering a lecture on “How Safety Gear In Cricket Can Be Improved”, provided data aimed at improving impact attenuation capacity, making it safer by improving design of cricket pads and centre guards along with the need for gloves to provide higher safety and also being user friendly.
Dr Kudchadkar emphasised that appropriate and approved safety gear must be made compulsory and that strict guidelines need to be conveyed to the manufacturers for producing approved safety gear to reduce head and facial injuries.
Dr Kudchadkar, who played for Goa as opening batsman in his younger days, had personally experienced perils of red cherry injury and how unsafe, faulty gear can be more detrimental for the players.
"My experience as a player, sports medicine expert and now an innovator and researcher placed me in an advantageous position to provide better tips on safety and injury prevention in cricket and recommend changes in design," explained the specialist.
He stated that it was the death of Australian cricket player Phillip Hughes, who died after a ball hit him below the left ear despite wearing a helmet in 2014, that lead him to a scientific analysis of such injuries leading to the study on protective sports gear.
He added, “The players are not aware of what material is required for protection against injuries." Another study found that using a 2mm boron carbide plate in the pads would make them stronger and lighter.
He concluded that most of the protective cricket gears currently in use around the world are not scientifically standardised for impact safety, comfort and mobility.
“The study, the first of its kind, was aimed at standardisation of protective gears with sports injuries specialists having worked with biomedical engineers with feedback taken from top players on injuries and the gears they use," disclosed Dr Kudchadkar.
“Artificial Intelligence used during the field and laboratory testing found that the grill of the helmet could get deformed when hit with a hard ball and as such the use of graphite or kevlar, a bullet-proof material for the helmet grill,” he added.