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Shane Warne still loves his baggy green

3 minute read

Having sold his famous baggy green, legendary legspinner Shane Warne says he has always loved and cherished the iconic Australian cricketing hat.

SHANE WARNE
SHANE WARNE Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

Shane Warne has had an interesting history with the baggy green, but the legendary legspinner still says it means "everything to him" after fetching more than a $1 million at auction.

The Australian cricket legend's famous cap sold for an extraordinary $1,007,500 on Friday to raise money for bushfire relief.

Warne preferred wearing a white floppy hat while out in the field during his illustrious 145-Test career.

He once even refused to don the baggy green at Wimbledon when Steve Waugh insisted all players wear it to a match during the 2001 Ashes.

"I looked at Mark Waugh and he said 'I'm not wearing it' and I said 'I'm not wearing it either'," Warne revealed in 2018 of the incident.

But Australia's all-time leading Test wicket-taker says not wearing it as much as some players should not be interpreted as not loving it.

"I cherish the Baggy Green and love what it stands for," Warne said.

"I was not a big wearer of the baggy green ... but that doesn't mean it didn't mean everything to me.

"Playing for Australia was something unbelievable. I carried it around for 17 or 18 years in my bag.

"I thought the gesture for me to put it up there because it meant so much to me, (showed) how much it's (the bushfire disaster) touched all of us."

The buyer, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, has announced it would take Warne's baggy green on a national tour to raise additional funds for fire-ravaged communities.

After touring the country, the cap will become a permanent exhibit at the Bradman Museum in Bowral, NSW.

"It (the sale) has exceeded my expectations," Warne said.

"It made me feel proud and satisfied, but I didn't do it for that - I did it to try and raise as much money as we could.

"It's been really touching and I thank everyone for their support."

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