Geoff Boycott bats © Getty Images
Sir Geoffrey Boycott has put his personal collection of cricket memorabilia up for auction, including the bat with which he scored his 100th first-class hundred, against Australia at Headingley in 1977, and a stump from England’s famous Ashes victory at Headingley in 1981.
The 130 lots went on sale on Tuesday, with bidding due to close on November 16. Christie’s, the auctioneers, described it as “one of the last great collections of cricketing memorabilia left in private hands … chronicling the career of the Yorkshire and England legend.”
It is unclear quite why Boycott has decided to part with his memorabilia now, although he turned 80 earlier this week, and having missed this summer’s international coverage due to the Covid outbreak, he has not had his contract with BBC’s Test Match Special renewed, after 14 years in the role.
The auction will open with the sale of an original scorebook from his home debut for Ackworth Cricket Club in Yorkshire as a 13-year old in 1954, which is inscribed with the entry ‘J. Boycott batting at 8 scores 9 not out’.
Other lots include a range of caps worn by his international opponents, including Greg Chappell’s Baggy Green and Viv Richards’ maroon West Indies cap – which have a reserve price of £3200 and £4000 respectively – as well as the shirt worn by Michael Holding at Barbados in 1981, when he bowled Boycott for a duck in one of the most fabled overs of all time.
In addition to his 100th hundred bat, which could fetch in excess of £30,000, Boycott’s collection includes the bat with which he went past Garry Sobers’ then world-record Test runs total of 8032, at Delhi in 1981, and the one with which he scored his Test-best 246 not out against India at Headingley in 1967 – an innings for which he was then dropped for slow scoring.
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo