The Kahuna is a range of bats made by Kookaburra Sport and is the company's sole premier bat line. The Kahuna Icon faced controversy in early 2006 when there was a dispute over whether the graphite backing of the bat would increase its performance to an unfair level, as compared to even other bats such as the Kookaburra Beast, to which it is often compared. This led to the Marylebone Cricket Club, the copyright holder to the laws of cricket, ruling the bat ineligible for use in international test matches. Its use is still permitted in all other forms of cricket, making it a bat which dominates the vast majority of others.
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Characteristics
The Kahuna is similar in its characteristics to the Kookaburra Beast. However, the Kahuna still features being made of the highest grade of English willow, has a twelve-piece Sarawak cane handle, an octopus grip and weighs between 2 lb 7oz and 3 lb 4oz. Its pick-up is relatively superior to other Kookaburra range bats, and provides the force required to dwarf even the largest boundaries, a characteristic which is distinctive to the Kahuna.
Controversy
In late 2005, the MCC scrutinized Ricky Ponting's use of the Kahuna, after complaints that the bat provided unfair advantage to the batsman. In 2006, MCC went on to ban graphite-coated bats (including Kookaburra's Kahuna, Genesis Hurricane and the Beast) in International cricket.