The ACIS helmet is not a brand-new phenomenon. It’s been two years now since Tom Milsom designed it with Carberry only one of the many English batsmen donning it at different levels. (Source: Express Photo)

JUST over a year ago, Michael Carberry walked out to bat in an Ashes Test sporting a helmet that caused as much conjecture as his technique to face the new-ball on Australian soil. It was a mix between one you would expect to see on Transformers and those on view during the Tour de France. It had a conspicuous sheen, a space-model design and also with racing stripes on either side of the temple. And it sloped downwards near the peak. On further inspection, it was revealed to have air-bags in its confines ensuring that the contact between the skull and the helmet is minimal.

The Australian players though didn’t seem to take much notice. Except Mitchell Johnson maybe. He now had a unique target to aim at, which he did without much push or persuasion. By the end of the Ashes, both Carberry and his ultramodern headgear had been pushed somewhere into the outback of Australia’s collective memory.

Last weekend, Carberry was back in Australia, opening the innings for the Perth Scorchers in their opening Big Bash League (BBL) tie. Also back was his novel helmet, the ACIS or the Air Cushioning Impact System designed by Ayrtek, a company based in the outskirts of Bristol in England.

Only that this time around it was shiny orange in colour to go with the Scorchers’ theme. This time around, the whole of Australia took notice of the 34-year-old English opener. A lot has changed since he last stepped foot Down Under. Phillip Hughes is no more, and he was delivered a fatal blow while wearing a helmet, which in many circles since has been described as having been inadequate for the cause.

This time around, Australia has accepted Carberry’s helmet not just as a fancy accessory but as the future of all protective headgear to be worn by its cricketers at different levels. And it is learnt that they will be in extensive use across the nation by next summer.

The ACIS helmet is not a brand-new phenomenon. It’s been two years now since Tom Milsom designed it with Carberry only one of the many English batsmen donning it at different levels. But somehow it’s never really caught on in Australia or for that matter in many other parts of the world. Kumar Sangakkara did don it briefly but not for long enough. So did Stuart Broad before reverting to the more traditional one and getting his nose broken by a Varun Aaron bouncer earlier this year.

There are two standout features of the ACIS that provide it with extra protection against five-and-a-half ounces of leather crashing into it.

Firstly come the air-bags system that cushions the impact of any blow. The ACIS is provided with a rubber button at the back, which is used to inflate the bag to make it fit. You press it 15 times for it to be the right size for most batsmen. But it does inflate to any size required.

How it works is that the impact of the blow gets mellowed because of the air-bags like how a cyclist’s helmet ensures that the air doesn’t provide any intrusion to the rider but instead rushes past him/her.

Yallop’s support

Over the last few weeks, one former Australian captain has taken a special interest in the ACIS and has been propagating its use in schools around Victoria. He is also someone who became the first batsman to wear a helmet in a Test match.

“He looks like an astronaut who’s just walked out to bat,” is how Graham Yallop was described as when he first wore the kind of headgear that would become a universal trend from thereon. And Yallop tells The Indian Express, the ACIS is what cricketers at all levels should be aiming to wear in the aftermath of the Hughes disaster.

“This is the future, and I feel everyone should use it. Not just batsmen even wicket-keepers. The air-bags system ensures more safety than it ever has against being hit by a ball. You don’t realize the importance of a helmet till the time you get hit,” says Yallop, who started using helmets with a fibre-glass lid and a semi-plastic visor after having his jaw broken by a Colin Croft bouncer.

To be honest, Australia is yet to recover completely from the shock of having seen one of its own literally killed on a cricket field. But it seems ready to opt for a more ‘safety first’ policy even if it means its cricketers look more like cyclists from a space-program.