Bradman Signature - The power in name The Don.

Donald Bradman

Sir Donald Bradman aka The Don is a cricket legend like we’ve never seen before. Donald is regarded not only as one the best batsmen of all time, but considered THE greatest batsmen of all time. Just to put Sir Donald into context, Sachin Tendulkar’s test match batting average (total runs scored / no. outs) is 54.58 compared to Donald Bradman’s 99.94. The second highest batting average of all time is 60.97 by Graeme Pollock.

Sir Donald’s Australian cricket career spanned over 20 years from 1928 – 1948 in which he played 52 test matches, 80 innings and clocked up a whopping 6996 runs during the course of his career. To put simply, Bradman’s Test batting average is claimed to be statistically the greatest achievement in any major sport. In the words of former Australia captain Bill Woodfull, he was “worth three batsmen to Australia.” Now that’s a serious achievement!

Bradman was committed to attacking and entertaining cricket which drew record audiences and was so dangerous that England devised some controversial tactics known as Bodyline to curb Bradman’s scoring. Following a break due to the Second World War, he made a dramatic comeback with a record-breaking unbeaten tour of England which dubbed the Aussies as “The Invincibles”.

Following his retirement, Bradman still played a massive role in cricket as an administrator, selector and writer for three decades. Bradman was and still is a national icon of Australia. In 2001, Australian Prime Minister John Howard called Bradman the “greatest living Australian” and Bradman has appeared on stamps and coins as well as having a museum dedicated to his life. On the centenary of his birth in August 2008, the Royal Australian Mint issued a $5 gold coin with his image. What a hero!!

At the end of Donald’s life, Time magazine marked his obituary as “Australian icon considered by many to be the pre-eminent sportsman of all time… One of Australia’s most beloved heroes, he was revered abroad as well. When Nelson Mandela was released after 27 years in prison, his first question to an Australian visitor was, “Is Sir Donald Bradman still alive?”