The Aussies are famous for their cricketing spirit and passion for the game, be it any format of the game. But, Test cricket is where they thrive. And a defining feature of the Australian team in the longest format is their 'Baggy Green' cap.
The emotions attached to it was evident when, recently, David Warner lost his prized cap on a flight from Melbourne to Sydney, ahead of his farewell Test at the SCG. He even made an impassioned appeal on social media for the missing cap.
History
The Baggy Green is a myrtle green cap worn by Australian Test players. It was not originally baggy. The cap is also part of Australia’s national pride. The respect for it increased during the captaincy of Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh. The moniker ‘Baggy Green’ emerged during the 1950s and achieved cult status in the next 25 years. The cap was handed to a player before their Test debut, along with the kit. This new act was introduced by former skipper Mark Taylor. In the 1990s, an unofficial tradition came up among the players – of using the cap throughout their careers. The ageing of the Baggy Green showed the seniority of the player.
Legacy
Many players including Shane Warne, who liked to wear his famous sun-brim hat, wore the ‘Baggy Green’ in Tests. The manufacturer of these caps, an Australian company with the same name, says that they get hundreds of emails requesting them to sell these caps.
In the Ashes of 1994-95, Taylor and Waugh insisted their players wear their Baggy Greens. Taylor wanted to show everyone their respect towards the cap and its tradition. The value for it increased as time passed.
Under the hammer
The debut Test cap of legendary batter Sir Don Bradman, which he wore against England, was put on the auction table in 2020. He had given it to his family friend Peter Dunham in the 1950s, and Dunham loaned it to the state library, as part of the Bradman collection. The cap was sold for AU$450,000. It was the second-highest price paid for a cricketing artefact, and was bought by an Aussie businessman Peter Freedman.
Ace leg-spinner Shane Warne's Test cap holds the auction record - it was sold for AU$ 1,007,500 to the Commonwealth Bank and the money went to aid bushfire victims.
The past
Before its rise to prominence, the cap was used by the players for non-cricketing purposes! Bill Lawry and Bill Ponsford used it to do their household chores. Players like Ian Chappell never kept or took care of their Baggy Greens. He always opposed giving importance to the cap to the game. He even complained about it saying: “It’s a five-dollar piece of cloth”.
