Otago Volts' Warren Barnes bowling in his custom-made face mask during the Super Smash Twenty20 match against the Northern Knights at Seddon Park.

Otago's Warren Barnes wore a a protective helmet/visor while bowling in Saturday's Twenty20 match in Hamilton.

The seamer and Volts coach Rob Walter combined to design the headgear, which resembles a baseball umpire's visor and a track cyclist's helmet.

Walter said Barnes felt his bowling action, which sees him with his head down immediately after delivery, left him vulnerable to being struck by a fierce straight drive on the head from the facing batsman.

JOHN DAVIDSON/PHOTOSPORT NZ Warren Barnes of Otago has his head down in his follow-through in this match in 2015.

READ MORE:

* Kitchen bolter in NZ T20 squad

* Stokes leaves Canterbury early

* Sharma notches record-fast ton

* Starc unlikely for Boxing Day test

During the Northern Knights innings, Black Caps test paceman Neil Wagner was struck on the leg by a stinging drive from Daryl Mitchell that temporarily floored him.

While batsmen have worn helmets against quick bowlers since the 1970s, wicketkeepers can don protective masks - as first popularised by former Knight Peter McGlashan – and umpires recently have taken to wearing armguards and headgear at the bowler's end, but Barnes appears to be a trend-setter for bowlers.

Barnes has worn the headgear just once before Saturday's game at Seddon Park against the Knights. He bowled three overs and took 3-33 – the bowling version of a quadruple-triple Nelson? – as the Knights smashed 212-9 off their 20 overs batting first on their way to victory.

It was the Knights' second-best Twenty20 domestic batting total, just behind the 214-9 they made recently at Bay Oval against Auckland, with Tim Seifert making a century. The hosts had four players scoring in the 40s – Anton Devcich (42 off 21 balls), Brett Hampton (44 off 20), Daniel Flynn (47 off 26) and Daryl Mitchell (41 off 24) as the Knights plundered 12 sixes and 18 fours.

In reply, the Volts were never in the contest as they were dismissed for 106 in the 15th over.

English import Chris Jordan, in his only appearance for the Knights this season, produced a stunning one-handed catch to get rid of new Black Caps Twenty20 call-up Anaru Kitchen. He also took 2-17 off three overs and made eight off three balls to show his class.

Former T20 international Devcich, who may have been wondering what propelled Kitchen into the NZ side ahead of him, capped a outstanding match by taking a career-best 4-12 off three overs with his left-arm spin.

SCOREBOARD: Northern Knights 212-9 in 20 overs (Daniel Flynn 47 off 26 balls, B Hampton 44 off 20, A Devcich 42 off 21, D Mitchell 41 off 24; W Barnes 3-33 off 3 overs) beat Otago Volts 106 all out in 15 overs (S Hicks 52 off 28; Devcich 4-12 off 3 overs, Mitchell 3-22 off 3) by 106 runs.