(9 September 2010) The Mongoose cricket bat is coming to the South African market, just in time for the opening of the cricket season. The first five hundred bats will be sold at discounted introductory prices exclusively on South Africa’s online marketplace bobshop.co.za.

The Mongoose bats caused a stir in the cricket world last year, when Mathew Hayden used the short-blade bat in IPL so effectively that it very soon became known all over the world.

The Mongoose bat marks the single most radical change to cricket equipment since 1771. It was designed specifically to meet the demands of the fast, action-packed Twenty20 cricket and its MMi3 model won the prestigious Sports Industry Award for Technological Innovation in Sport 2010. With its shorter blade and longer handle, this bat promises to give the batsman 20% more power and 15% more bat speed than a conventional bat, without requiring any changes in the players’ style and technique.

The sole distributor for South Africa, Phoenix Sport, will mark the launch of the Mongoose bats on the Bob Shop online platform by slashing the price tag by 15 to 20 percent from the recommended retail value. The Bob Shop prices range from R650 to R3000, which translates into savings of between R200 and R800. Six basic models with different weights are listed for sale on the site. Some of the models are with the revolutionary short blade. There are also models with a longer blade, though their blade is still shorter than the blade of traditional cricket bats. Several models of Mongoose bats on offer on Bob Shop are tailored specifically for juniors and children.

"We are thrilled to be part of introducing this product to the South African market,” says Bob Shop CEO Jaco Jonker. “As a high-traffic ecommerce site, with over one million visitors per month, Bob Shop is an ideal platform for reaching shoppers”.