Lachlan Fisher is an Australian fine cricket bat maker. As part of his Winston Churchill Fellowship, he visited the United Kingdom and India to research Cricket Bat-making, and learn as much as he could about this art to bring these skills and knowledge home to Australia.
During his Winston Churchill Fellowship, Lachlan discovered that Cricket Bat Willow is in great demand, and there are times when the timber is not available in the various grades needed for the bat manufacturers. The increased demand for Bat Willow in India and Pakistan has put pressure on the English Suppliers.
In Essex UK, Lachlan learned from a local British family business, owned by the Watling family to learn about the Cricket Bat industry; from the propagation of young trees, through to tree management to harvesting and milling. The lessons learnt with this company are being applied and adapted to conditions in Australia. In England, he met the biggest willow supplier in the world contributing approximately 280,000 rough blocks to bat manufacturers annually.
In India, Lachlan met the biggest importer of Bat Willow from England, who were looking forward to using Australian willow and very helpful in providing the market figures for willow importation into India and Pakistan.