Used by Australian great, Steve Smith, when he brought up his 36th Test century against Sri Lanka
RRP: £250, Edges: 34mm, Weight: 2lb 1oz
The New Balance DC500 Max was used by Australian great, Steve Smith, when he brought up his 36th Test century against Sri Lanka.
There are few greater endorsements than the former Aussie captain and this is echoed by Nick Friend, who described it as the "best bat" of the day.
His evaluation mentioned the "great pick-up, central middle and curved toe." On top of all that, the round handle "felt great."
He wasn't the only batter to make mention of the handle, with one student tester saying: "I like the grip, it was very comfy."
Contrary to most modern bats, the DC500 Max was "quite heavy" for some of our testers.
This did little to take away from the bat's performance though, with the middle offering users plenty of value for their shots. One tester went as far as to say that it had a "big middle."
As every bat should do, the judgement depended from player to player and one student tester maintained that the bat was actually "nice and light," while another commented on the "nice pick-up."
As for Surrey's 2025 women's captain, Bryony Smith, she concluded: "After hitting a few balls, I would say... OK."
Initial impression: 6.8
Build quality: 7.4
Pick-up/feel: 7.2
Performance: 7.4
OVERALL SCORE: 7.2
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