Aus vs NZ: Shane Warne auctions Baggy Green to raise funds for Australian bushfire crisis

Former Australian legendary spinner Shane Warne made his Baggy Green cap available for auction to raise funds for the Bushfire Appeal in a generous gesture, aiding those affected by the devastating fires across Australia. He announced the news during the Tea break on Day 4 of the Sydney Test on Monday. The Baggy Green is a prized possession for any Australian Test cricketer and Warne's is among the most famous in cricket. Warne wore the cap throughout his 145-match Test career for Australia in which he took 708 wickets.

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Aus vs NZ: Shane Warne auctions his Baggy Green cap

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The cap is expected to fetch a huge amount and the top bid was already into 6 figures just over an hour after bidding began on Monday afternoon. The auction website has been experiencing problems due to high demand, with bids coming almost every minute. The item comes with an autographed certificate of authenticity from Warne and 100 per cent of proceeds from the online auction will be donated to the Bushfire Appeal.

While speaking to Fox Cricket, Warne said that the bushfires had been absolutely horrific and they had touched people in a way as people could see total devastation. He added that lives had been lost, families had been lost and over 500 million wildlife had died. 

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Shane Warne said that he could help the victims by auctioning the Baggy Green cap that he wore through his 145-Test career. He also spoke about how he liked to wear his white floppy. Warne added that he always wore the Baggy Green on the first session of a bowling day every single time and he had that cap for his whole career. He went on to say that the money raised would be donated to the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal.

Shane Warne was hopeful that his Baggy Green could raise some significant funds to help all those people that were in desperate need. Warne is Test cricket's second-most successful bowler with 708 wickets in 145 Tests behind Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (800).

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