Queensland [Australia], January 27 : A rare baggy green cap worn by Australian cricket legend Sir Donald Bradman during India's maiden Test series as an independent nation has been sold for AU$460,000 (approximately US$320,000) at an auction in Queensland.
The iconic cap, dating back to the 1947-48 home series against India, was purchased by an anonymous buyer at a Gold Coast auction conducted by Lloyds Auctions. Bradman had worn the cap in what turned out to be his final home Test series before gifting it to Indian opening bowler Sriranga Wasudev Sohoni. The Sohoni family preserved the historic memorabilia for more than seven decades without ever displaying it publicly.
Lee Hames, chief operating officer of Lloyds Auctions, described the item as a priceless cricket treasure. "It has been hidden for 75 years, that's over three generations under lock and key," he said, adding that family members were allowed to view it only briefly after turning 16, according to ESPNCricinfo.
Although India lost the five-match series 4-0, Sohoni played a symbolic role by delivering the first ball of the opening Test, marking the beginning of India's journey in international cricket as a sovereign nation. While he went wicketless in his lone appearance of the series, the moment remains historically significant.
The cap bears inscriptions of both players' names "D.G. Bradman" and "S.W. Sohoni" along with "1947-48" embroidered beneath the Australian crest. It is one of only 11 known Bradman baggy green caps from an era when players used a new cap for each series.
Bradman's memorabilia continue to command enormous value. His debut cap from 1928 was sold for AU$450,000 in 2020, while Shane Warne's baggy green holds the record after fetching over AU$1 million for Australian Red Cross bushfire appeal in 2020.
Sohoni featured in four Tests for India, taking two wickets, but enjoyed a distinguished first-class career with 232 wickets and over 4,300 runs. Bradman, widely regarded as the greatest batter in cricket history, scored 6,996 Test runs at an unparalleled average of 99.94.