Legendary spinner Shane Warne has raised more than a million dollars for Bushfire Disaster Relief by auctioning off his 'Baggy Green' Australia Test cap. The amount raised is more than twice the amount one of Don Bradman’s baggy greens made in 2003. All proceeds from the auction will go towards bushfire relief and rescue operations that has ravaged the eastern coast of Australia since September leading to tragic losses of life. The auction was extended for almost 10 minutes because of a late flurry of bids.
"Thank you so much to everyone that placed a bid and a huge thank you/congrats to the successful bidder - you have blown me away with your generosity and this was way beyond my expectations!" Warne posted on Twitter. "The money will go direct to the Red Cross bushfire appeal. Thank you, thank you, thank you." One of Wisden’s five cricketers of the century, Warne played 145 Tests and claimed 708 wickets. The 50-year-old is Test cricket’s second-most successful bowler behind Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan who took 800 wickets. The baggy green is presented to Australian players when they make their Test debut.
