ComBat

The ComBat was a cricket bat made of aluminium that was the subject of an incident at the WACA cricket ground in Perth in December 1979. Australia were playing England in the first Test, and were in trouble at the end of the first day, at a score of 232/8, with Dennis Lillee not out. When the second day of play began, Lillee emerged onto the field carrying not the traditional willow bat, but a cricket bat made from aluminium. The bat, manufactured by the company of Lillee's good friend Graeme Monaghan, was intended only as a cheap replacement for traditional cricket bats for schools and developing countries. Nevertheless, Lillee decided to use it in the Test match as a marketing stunt, and at that point, there were no rules against using such a bat. This was not the first time Lillee had used an aluminium bat, as he had employed one 12 days previously in a Test against the West Indies without incident. The trouble began on the fourth ball of the day, when Lillee straight drove a ball from Ian Botham. The ball went for three runs, and nothing appeared untoward. However, Australian captain Greg Chappell thought that the ball should have gone for a four, and instructed twelfth man Rodney Hogg to deliver a conventional wooden bat to Lillee. As this was happening, English captain Mike Brearley complained to umpires Max O'Connell and Don Weser that the metallic bat was damaging the soft, leather cricket ball. Although the umpires told Lillee he had to change his bat, Lillee instructed Hogg that he wasn't going to, and assumed a posture to face the next delivery. Brearley, Lillee and the umpires held an animated discussion for almost ten minutes, before Chappell decided that the game would be held up if things continued.