Next month, a rare Baggy Green headgear that the renowned Sir Donald Bradman wore during a 1947–48 series against India is scheduled to be auctioned off.
During the series, which was India’s first international cricket visit since independence, Bradman gave the cap to Indian all-rounder Sriranga Wasudev Sohoni.
This cap has never been on public display or put up for sale, in contrast to the majority of surviving Baggy Green caps from Bradman’s era, many of which are kept in museums or privately owned collections.
The Australian Associated Press (AAP) reports that it has been owned by the same family for over 75 years.
“This is a genuine piece of cricket history that Sir Donald Bradman personally gifted,” Lloyds Auctions Lee Hames said in Sydney.
“It’s uninterrupted family ownership for 75 years and its direct link to ‘The Don’ make it one of the most important Bradman-related pieces to come to auction.”
During Bradman’s time, Test cricket players wore a different cap for every series. The cap will be put up for public auction, attracting interest from fans, museums, organizations, and individual collectors worldwide.
In the 1947/48 Test series, which Australia won 4-0, Bradman, widely considered the greatest batsman in history, scored 715 runs in six innings at an incredible average of 178.75. His tally included three centuries and a double hundred.
Bradman averaged an incredible 99.94 runs per Test innings before passing away in 2001 at the age of 92.
Bradman cap will open up for auction at Lloyds Auctions for one Australian dollar. On January 26, the process will end.
Bradman’s caps have been sold before; a Baggy Green from the same India series sold for an incredible Rs 2.63 crore last year.
