A very large signed vintage photograph (372 × 368 mm) of Richie Benaud, taken in England during a publicity shoot for Gray-Nicolls cricket bats
Light foxing and creases to the edges (trifling blemishes readily matted out); a few tiny indentations; in excellent condition overall.
The inkstamp of the London photographer, Chard Jenkins, is on the verso. The photograph probably dates from the 1962-63 Australian tour of England. The signature and inscription ('Best wishes') were obtained at a later date. They are written very clearly in ink on the surface of the photograph. In this image, all background detail has been masked, leaving just Benaud behind the wicket with his bat over his shoulder, with 'Nicolls Richie Benaud Autograph Super Steel Spring' clearly visible on the blade. Richie Benaud (1930-2015) played 63 Tests between 1952 and 1964. 'With little to show for his first six years in Test cricket, he blossomed as a fully fledged allrounder in South Africa in 1957-58, then flowered as a charismatic captain at home against England in 1958-59. He repossessed the Ashes, which his teams then successfully defended twice. As a legspinner, he was full of baits and traps, and he batted and fielded with verve. Yet it was his presence, as much as anything, which summoned the best from players: cool but communicative, he impressed as one to whom no event was unexpected, no contingency unplanned for. The same has applied to his journalism: terse, direct and commonsensical, and his broadcasting: mellow and authoritative. His wise head was sought by Kerry Packer in the formation of World Series Cricket in 1977, conferring respectability on the breakaway professional circuit. A guru to Ian Chappell and Shane Warne among others, he is perhaps the most influential cricketer and cricket personality since the Second World War' (Cricinfo profile, by Gideon Haigh).
Item #130359
Sold