Meerut Cricket Bat Hockey Stick Sports Goods Cluster

Meerut in western Uttar Pradesh is the country largest sports goods manufacturing cluster, producing over 70 percent of India cricket bats, hockey sticks, boxing gloves, and protective equipment. English willow and Kashmir willow bat blanks are shaped by hand on turning lathes, then pressed and knocked-in by experienced craftsmen who grade each bat by sound and grain quality. The cluster employs an estimated 200,000 workers across 2,000 units ranging from cottage workshops in Mawana Road lanes to export factories. Cooperative producer groups supply leather for footballs and boxing gloves from Kanpur tanneries to Meerut stitching units. Meerut sports goods are exported to English county boards, Australian state associations, West Indies cricket academies, and UAE sports retailers. The cluster also manufactures martial arts equipment, gymnasium weights, and field hockey goal nets for international buyers.