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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.
Start with a junior programme
We suggest children start through a board's entry programme or a club with qualified coaches, who will also cover sizing and fit; this guide describes neither. The ECB describes All Stars Cricket as its programme for ages 5 to 8 and Dynamos Cricket for ages 8 to 11 (20 August 2021); the ECB launched Dynamos for the 2020 season in a February 2020 release but says in its August 2021 release that it was introduced in 2021. Cricket Australia's Woolworths Cricket Blast provides equipment and a Starter or Progression pack for each registered child; its programme page says it is for children 10 and under, while a CA news story of 4 February 2024 says 5 to 12. NZC's Smash Play Junior-Tamariki needs no team, and its ANZ Junior Game uses shorter pitches, fewer players and smaller boundaries. See how people learn.
What the Laws leave to the boards
The 2017 Code 4th Edition (2026), in force from 1 October 2026, leaves the junior game's dimensions to each national governing body: the pitch length (Law 6.6), the stumps and bails (Law 8.4) and which ball size is used (Law 4.6). The smallest ball in the Laws, Size 3, weighs 133 to 140 g when new (Law 4.1); the 2022 edition's under-13 ball had a wider range, 133 to 144 g. Bats of size 6 and smaller are exempt from the 52% handle limit (Law 5.7.3), and laminated Type D bats, once allowed only in junior cricket under the 2022 edition, may now be used at lower levels of the game as each board decides.
Helmets, guards and fielding distances, side by side
| Board, document and status | Batting | Keeping standing up | Close fielding | Guards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECB Recreational Cricket Safety Regulations 2025; mandatory; under-18s in hardball cricket | Helmet with faceguard or grille against a hard ball, in matches and practice | Helmet with faceguard or grille, or a face protector | Ages 16 and 17 within 8 yards (7.3 m): helmet with faceguard or grille. Minimum distances: 11 yards (10 m) at 10 to 13, 8 yards (7.3 m) at 14 and 15, in hardball and softball | Male players: groin protector when batting, keeping standing up, and at 16 and 17 fielding within 8 yards |
| Cricket Ireland Young Cricketer Directives 2020; directives; under-18s | Any batter under 18 must wear a helmet | Head protector at any speed of bowling | Under-13s and younger no closer than 11 yards (10 m), under-15s and younger 8 yards (7.3 m); in the under-16 to under-18 groups, head protector within 6 yards (5.5 m) | Boys fielding within 6 yards: box |
| NZC Helmet Policy 2024-25; mandatory; community hardball players under 19, including in senior cricket | British Standard helmet with a face guard, in play and practice | Within 5 metres of the stumps | Within 7 metres, except behind the wicket on the off side | None found |
| Cricket Australia, helmet recommendations page; recommendation | No national junior helmet rule found; CA has strongly recommended BS 7928:2013 helmets in community cricket since 2019, and now a neck protector | None found | ||
- Consent. The ECB's 2025 regulations do not accept written parental consent for a junior to go without a helmet; exceptions go to the ECB with evidence. The ECB and PCA's guidance of 24 August 2016 already said no such consent should be accepted.
- Distances apply even in a helmet. Both the ECB's and Cricket Ireland's minimum fielding distances apply even when a helmet is worn, and both exclude positions behind the wicket on the off side.
- Representative teams. NZC expects major association representative teams in its national tournaments from under-17 upward to follow its helmet policy.
The ECB's regulations are read from a copy reproduced in a Cornwall Cricket handbook dated 1 April 2025, and the row for players aged 9 or younger is ambiguous in that copy, so it is not given. Each board's current document governs.
Fast-bowling limits, side by side
| Board, document and status | Maximum overs per spell and per day, by age |
|---|---|
| ECB Recreational Cricket Safety Regulations 2025; mandatory; hardball, 19 and under | 11 and under: 4 and 8. 12 and 13: 5 and 10. 14 and 15: 5 and 12. 16 and 17: 6 and 15. 18 and 19: 7 and 18 |
| Cricket Australia Junior Pace Bowling Workload Guidelines (April 2026); guidelines; pace bowlers | Under 11: 2 and 4. 11 to 13: 4 and 8. 13 to 15: 5 and 12. 15 to 17: 5 and 16. 17 to 19: 6 and 18 (per match day) |
| Cricket Ireland Young Cricketer Directives 2020; directives; fast bowlers | Up to under-13: 5 and 10. Under-14 and under-15: 6 and 12. Under-16 to under-19: 7 and 18 |
The ECB's limits follow the player's own age, not the match age group, and count deliveries in training at or near match intensity. Cricket Australia adds a "1, 3, 5 rule" for under-17s and a "2, 4, 6 rule" for ages 17 to 19 on rest days, bowling days and spell length. Cricket Ireland applies its directives by age on 1 September of the preceding year. No current national NZC junior bowling guideline was found. The junior cricket rules page has each in full.
Head injuries in young players
No body presents a helmet as concussion prevention, and return-to-play minimums differ by body and level: the ECB's recreational concussion guidelines (2025 copy) set no return to competitive cricket before 21 days and Cricket Australia's community guidelines no return to play until at least 21 days, the ECB saying its guidelines apply to all ages in recreational cricket and CA applying its own to any participant in community cricket, while the ICC's guidelines (June 2025) say concussion in players 18 and under needs a more conservative approach, with recovery typically taking about three weeks. A suspected head injury needs medical care. See concussion rules by board.
A recall to know about
Health Canada published a recall on 14 August 2023 of junior cricket sets sold under the Garden Games and Big Game Hunters names, product code 530, because they may contain lead and/or phthalates above allowable limits. More is on recalls.
Our picks by category
Junior cricket helmets
Mandatory for under-18 batters under the ECB (2025) and Cricket Ireland (2020), and for community hardball players under 19 under NZC (2024-25); strongly recommended in Australian community cricket. The ICC says helmets are tested separately against a junior ball, and its compliant list marks helmets senior, junior or both. The standard and the board's rule decide, not this guide.
Best for: Every young player in hardball cricket
Junior cricket bats
Bats of size 6 and smaller are exempt from the Laws' 52% handle limit. Which bat types a junior competition allows is the board's decision. Sizing is best done in person.
Best for: Children once a coach has helped with size
Batting pads
External leg guards under Appendix A.2.2 of the 2026 Laws. No board rule found sets a junior pad requirement or size; fit is for a coach to check.
Best for: Young batters moving to hardball cricket
Batting gloves
A 2022 study of New Zealand injury claims found players aged 10 to 20 more likely to be injured, and the authors recommended prevention aimed at contact injuries to the hands, fingers and head in that age group. No board rule found sets a junior glove requirement.
Best for: Young batters moving to hardball cricket
Abdominal guards
Required by the ECB (2025) for male under-18s in hardball cricket when batting or keeping standing up, and at 16 and 17 when fielding within 8 yards, and for boys within 6 yards of the bat in Cricket Ireland's under-16 to under-18 groups (2020).
Best for: Boys batting or fielding close in hardball cricket
Training balls
Soft and practice balls. The ECB's 2025 fast-bowling limits apply to hardball cricket and not to softball cricket, while its minimum fielding distances apply to both. BSI says its helmet standard does not consider kwik cricket, incrediball or street cricket.
Best for: Children starting out and garden practice
Sources
- ECB Recreational Cricket Safety Regulations 2025 (reproduced in a Cornwall Cricket handbook, April 2025)
- ECB, ECB and PCA helmet guidance for young players (24 August 2016)
- Cricket Ireland, Young Cricketer Directives 2020
- New Zealand Cricket, NZC Helmet Policy 2024-25
- New Zealand Cricket, NZC Concussion Policy 2024-25
- Cricket Australia, helmet recommendations
- Cricket Australia, Community Cricket Junior Pace Bowling Workload Guidelines (page)
- Cricket Australia, Junior Pace Bowling Workload Guidelines (PDF, April 2026)
- MCC, The Laws of Cricket, 2017 Code 4th Edition (2026), in force from 1 October 2026
- MCC, The Laws of Cricket, 2017 Code 3rd Edition (2022)
- ECB, over 100,000 kids make 2021 a record-breaking summer of cricket (20 August 2021)
- ECB, ECB launches Dynamos Cricket (27 February 2020)
- Cricket Australia, Woolworths Cricket Blast programme page
- Cricket Australia, Woolworths Cricket Blast achieves record numbers (4 February 2024)
- New Zealand Cricket, junior cricket
- ICC, helmets (rules and regulations page, current 2026)
- BSI Knowledge, BS 7928:2013+A1:2019 Specification for head protectors for cricketers
- ICC Concussion Management Guidelines (June 2025)
- ECB, Recreational Cricket Concussion Guidelines (copy hosted by Surrey Cricket Foundation, July 2025)
- Cricket Australia, Community Cricket Concussion Guidelines
- BMJ Open Sport and Exercise Medicine (2022), cricket injury claims in New Zealand 2005 to 2016 (AUT repository)
- Health Canada, junior cricket sets recalled due to presence of lead and phthalates (14 August 2023)