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This page explains what the Laws of Cricket, governing bodies and standards bodies publish. It is not a substitute for coaching from a qualified coach, and it does not replace medical advice.
No standard, no size: what the Laws define
Unlike helmets, pads, gloves and body guards have no standard named in any rule our research found, and the Laws of Cricket set no sizes for them. Nothing on this page says a product is certified, safe or legal. The 2017 Code 4th Edition (2026), in force from 1 October 2026, deals with them through definitions in Appendix A:
- External protective equipment (Appendix A.2.2). Any visible item worn to protect against external blows. For a batter that is a protective helmet, external leg guards (batting pads), batting gloves and, if visible, forearm guards.
- Clothing (Appendix A.12.2). Anything worn that is not external protective equipment, even if it is worn out of sight for protection. A text search of the 2026 Laws found no mention of abdominal guards (boxes), thigh guards or chest guards by name, so worn under clothing they count as clothing.
- Fielders (Law 28.1). No fielder other than the wicket-keeper may wear gloves or external leg guards. Protection for the hand or fingers may be worn only with the umpires' consent. Batting pads and gloves are for batting.
Two other Laws touch this kit. Law 5.6 says that, for the purposes of the Laws, the ball touching the bat includes touching a glove on the batter's hand holding the bat. And under Laws 41.6 and 41.7, when the umpire judges whether short-pitched bowling or a full toss is dangerous, any protective equipment the striker wears is disregarded.
Colour and visibility in international cricket
The ICC Clothing and Equipment Regulations, effective from January 2024 for bilateral international cricket, list pads, batting gloves, thigh pads, arm guards and other visible protective equipment as cricket equipment and set how they look:
| Item | Tests | ODIs and T20 internationals |
|---|---|---|
| Batting pads | Plain white; straps may be in the maker's colours; coloured piping only below the ankle strap | Plain coloured, not white or a light colour, the same across the team; discoloured or faded pads not permitted |
| Batting gloves | More than half the protective area white | More than half white or the base colour of the team's shirt |
| Arm guards | Plain white | White or the base colour of the playing shirt; no visible logos |
| Thigh pads, shin pads and similar | Any colour, worn under playing clothing and not visible, with no visible logos | |
The same regulations ban kit altered so that, in a match official's view, it falls below elite professional standards, naming pads with faded or flaking coloured paint as an example, and allow only one maker to be identified on each item. These are international rules. Club and league kit rules were not researched for this site; the competition's own rules decide.
Guards that boards require for young players
The Laws require no guard, but two boards do for juniors:
- ECB Recreational Cricket Safety Regulations (2025), mandatory. Under-18s batting against a hard ball must wear a helmet with faceguard or grille in matches and practice, and male players must also wear a groin protector. In hardball cricket, male under-18s keeping wicket standing up, and male 16- and 17-year-olds fielding within 8 yards (7.3 m) of the striking batter, must wear one too; the regulation does not apply to softball cricket. We read the regulation from a copy reproduced in a Cornwall Cricket handbook, not from an ECB-hosted file.
- Cricket Ireland Young Cricketer Directives (2020). Players in the under-16 to under-18 age groups who are under 18 must wear a head protector, and boys a box, when fielding within 6 yards (5.5 m) of the bat.
No Cricket Australia document naming junior requirements for pads, gloves or abdominal protectors was found. The junior kit guide puts each board's junior rules side by side.
What injury research names
Hands come up often in the medical studies. A study of New Zealand Accident Compensation Corporation claims for cricket from 2005 to 2016 (BMJ Open Sport and Exercise Medicine, 2022) found hand and finger injuries had the highest pooled rate, 9.2 per 1,000 participants, followed by the lumbar spine, and recommended prevention aimed at contact injuries to the hands, fingers and head in players aged 10 to 20. A ten-year review at one English first-class county, 2009 to 2018 (South African Journal of Sports Medicine, 2021), recorded 45 hand injuries, about 11 percent of which needed surgery. These studies describe injuries; they do not show what any glove or guard prevents. A suspected injury needs medical care, and this site gives no first aid or treatment. See injuries named.
Fit and sizing
How pads, gloves and guards should fit is not described here. We suggest having fit checked in person, by a coach or with the maker's guidance. What a maker says about a product's protection is the maker's claim.
Our picks by category
Batting pads
External leg guards, named in Appendix A.2.2 of the 2026 Laws as part of a batter's protective equipment. The Laws set no size or standard. In international cricket the ICC's January 2024 regulations require plain white pads in Tests and plain coloured pads, matching the team, in ODIs and T20 internationals; club competitions set their own rules.
Best for: Every batter in hardball cricket
Batting gloves
Gloves for the hands holding the bat; under Law 5.6, a ball touching them counts as touching the bat. Under Law 28.1 no fielder other than the wicket-keeper may wear gloves. In Tests the ICC requires more than half of the protective area to be white. Hand and finger injuries had the highest pooled rate in a 2022 New Zealand claims study.
Best for: Every batter in hardball cricket
Thigh guards
Worn under clothing, a thigh guard counts as clothing under Appendix A.12.2. The ICC requires thigh pads in international cricket to be worn under playing clothing and not visible, in any colour, with no visible logos. No board rule requiring one was found.
Best for: Batters wanting protection for the thigh
Arm guards
A forearm guard, if visible, is part of a batter's external protective equipment under Appendix A.2.2. The ICC requires arm guards to be plain white in Tests, and white or the shirt's base colour in ODIs and T20 internationals. No board rule requiring one was found.
Best for: Batters wanting forearm protection
Abdominal guards
Worn out of sight, so the Laws treat it as clothing. The ECB's 2025 recreational regulations make a groin protector mandatory in hardball cricket for male under-18s batting or keeping standing up, and for male 16- and 17-year-olds fielding within 8 yards, and Cricket Ireland's 2020 directives require boys fielding within 6 yards of the bat in the under-16 to under-18 groups to wear a box.
Best for: Male batters, close fielders and any player who wants one
Sources
- MCC, The Laws of Cricket, 2017 Code 4th Edition (2026), in force from 1 October 2026
- ICC Clothing and Equipment Rules and Regulations (effective January 2024)
- ECB Recreational Cricket Safety Regulations 2025 (reproduced in a Cornwall Cricket handbook)
- Cricket Ireland, Young Cricketer Directives 2020
- BMJ Open Sport and Exercise Medicine (2022), cricket injuries in New Zealand ACC claims, 2005 to 2016
- Ribbans, Chaudhry and Goudriaan, hand trauma in English domestic professional county cricket, South African Journal of Sports Medicine (2021)