Greg Chappell's baggy green: New traditions
You know what? It's not just a game to me I've had the same cap for 13 years. It's the greatest game in the world ... I've learned how to handle success, how to handle criticism, how to handle failure, how to fight back from adversity. I've learned about mateship, leadership. It's all because of the baggy green cap.
Australian batsman Justin Langer, 2007.
Above right: Australian batsman Justin Langer, 2007. Courtesy: Hamish Blair, Getty Images.
Originally, a baggy green cap was simply supplied to each player with his equipment and a new one was issued for each tour. In the early 1990s, however, an unofficial tradition emerged among the players of never replacing a cap. The more dilapidated a cap, the more it signifies a player's seniority.
Mark Taylor, team captain from 1994 to 1999, began formally presenting each Test debutant with their cap. His successor, Steve Waugh, developed the tradition by inviting former cricketing greats to present the caps to newcomers to the team. Waugh also introduced the practice of all players wearing the cap as a sign of team solidarity during the first fielding session of a Test match.
Right: The unofficial practice of never replacing a baggy green cap began in the 1990s. Steve Waugh refused to replace his as it held too many memories to simply
discard it. Courtesy: William West, Getty Images.
