CRICKET

By LIAM DURKIN

A RARE baggy green cap personally handed by Sir Donald Bradman to a fellow Test cricketer has been fully authenticated and will go under the hammer.

Bidding opens at $1 and is set to close on Australia Day, 2026.

The cap was given directly by Bradman to a fellow Test cricketer who shared the field with him late in his legendary career.

It has remained in the recipient’s family for more than 75 years, passed down through three generations, never offered for public sale and never displayed outside the family.

Baggy green caps linked to Bradman’s playing days are extraordinarily scarce.

Players in a previous era received a new cap at the beginning of each Test series, and in rare cases there was an additional cap issued.

Most known examples today are held by museums or tightly held private collections.

Artefacts with such a clear chain of ownership and personal connection to Bradman almost never appear on the open market.

Experts are tipping strong interest that could see the cap reach or even exceed $1 million.

Lloyds Auctions Chief Operations Officer, Lee Hames said the combination of rarity, and timing makes the baggy green stand out.

“This is a genuine piece of cricket history that Sir Donald Bradman personally gifted,” Hames said.

“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.

“Closing on Australia Day gives it special national resonance for collectors honouring our sporting heritage.”

Sir Donald Bradman retired from Test cricket in 1948 with a career batting average of 99.94 – a record widely regarded as one of the greatest statistical achievements in world sport.

His legacy remains deeply embedded in Australia’s sporting and cultural identity, notably through stories from the bush, such as the golf ball, stump and tank wall.

The cap will be offered at public auction by Lloyds Auctions. Strong interest is expected from private collectors, museums, institutions and cricket enthusiasts in Australia and internationally.

There are many local cricket tragics who will undoubtedly be interested in this item.

One Latrobe Valley local has an extensive collection of Bradman memorabilia that would rival any museum.

While Bradman himself doesn’t have any great connection to the area, the man who devised a plan to curb his influence, English captain Douglas Jardine, toured Gippsland during the Bodyline series of 1932/33.

Bradman has remained a revered yet controversial figure since his death in 2001. His own son, John, changed his surname to ‘Bradsen’ to escape public scrutiny and pressure.

Bradman’s freakish ability combined with a reserved personality led many to view him as an outsider to the rest of the Australian team.

His clashes with teammates were also well documented in cricket circles, especially those from the Catholic church.

During the time Bradman played in the 1930s, noticeable divisions existed in Australian society between Catholics of Irish descent and Anglo-Australian Protestants.

Australian batsman Jack Fingleton, who was Catholic, constantly butted heads with Bradman – a Protestant, as did champion leg spinner Bill O’Reilly.

It was said the pair laughed so hard when Bradman scored his famous last-innings duck, that their pressbox colleague Ernest Swanton commented “I thought they were going to have a stroke”.

Bradman likely held the grudge, never speaking about his feud with Fingleton or O’Reilly until after their deaths.

On field at least, O’Reilly and Bradman could tolerate each other, and while O’Reilly never concealed his personal dislike for Bradman, both men respected each other’s cricketing ability.

Until his death, O’Reilly spoke in awe of Bradman’s skill, saying that great Australian batsman like Greg Chappell and Allan Border were merely “child’s play” in comparison to The Don.

Conversely, Bradman, long after he had become Sir Donald Bradman and after O’Reilly died, rated him the greatest bowler he ever saw or faced.

For further information on the Bradman baggy and to register to bid, visit: lloydsauctions.com.au