Protection: Warren Barnes

LUKE Fletcher might disagree, after he missed half a season with a nasty dent in his head, but recent protective headgear for bowlers looks like health and safety gone mad.
Warren Barnes, an opening bowler for the Otago Volts, used the new headgear during a recent T20 match against the Canterbury Kings.
Barnes thrusts his head forward in his follow-through, something most pace bowlers do. According to his coach, who helped develop the headgear, this makes him more susceptible to being struck by the ball cannoning back off the bat – which it does with great...