That round bat always stikes me as being a particularly stupid device, I never could hit the bloody ball with it.

Ah. Anything you can't do isn't worth doing, eh? Seems thousands -- nay, millions of Americans (USA-ians) can hit the ball with the round bat, as softball, which uses a round bat, has millions of amateur adherents in the USofA. So it can't be all THAT hard. How many thumbs do you have, Bert?

Now if you can't hit a ball with a CRICKET bat, which is designed for limeys with a poor feel for dynamic physics, then you're REALLY a klutz.

Alex