NFT Auction: Bat signed by 2011 Cricket World Cup-winning team fetches $25,000

PTI, Dec 25, 2021, 1:15 PM IST

A bat signed by the 2011 World Cup-winning Indian cricket team was sold for $25,000, while Australia opener David Warner’s 2016 IPL-winning signed SunRisers Hyderabad jersey fetched $30,000 in a non-fungible token (NFT) auction in Dubai.

The NFT auction, conducted by CricFlix in association with RevSportz and Fanatic Sports, witnessed huge response for the historic digital artifacts, garnering a total of $335,950 bidding on Friday.

While Warner’s 2016 IPL-winning signed jersey topped the chart with the highest bid, digital rights of the bat signed by the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led team, which handed the country the ODI World Cup after 28 years, also attracted massive bidding.

The digital rights to the collection of cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar’s 200th Test match was successfully bagged by an ardent Tendulkar fan, Amal Khan from Mumbai for $40,000 (Rs 30,01,410).

The collection, including a signed match jersey, special commemorative cover and autographed match ticket, was the first one to go under the hammer.

With an exclusive collection of 23 rare artifacts of world cricket, including the official souvenir and team’s autographs of India’s maiden tour to England in 1932 were sold for $14,500 (Rs 10,88,011) and $14,000 (Rs 10,50,493) respectively.

The CricFlix’s auction roaster also saw the Don Brandman-signed NFT stamp being sold for $26,600 (Rs 19,95,937).

Lata Mangeshkar concert recording for the 1983 World Cup-winning team was bought for $21,000 (Rs 15,75,740) while Balasaheb Thackeray cartoons and autographs from India’s first tour of Pakistan in 1952 were auctioned for $15,000 (Rs 11,25,528).

For digital rights of India’s first-ever Test skipper CK Naiyudu’s collection, including his original bank account book and passport, were sold for $7500 (Rs 5,62,725) and $980 (Rs 73,529) respectively.

Veteran India pacer Jhulan Goswami’s 2017 World Cup semi-final jersey fetched $10,000 (Rs 7,50,300). It was also the first-ever NFT from the women cricketing world.

“Authentic cricket memorabilia that included artifacts from historic moments, the auction received huge response with $335,950 (more than Rs 2.5 cr) being collected,” said Anwar Hussain, Co-Founder of CricFlix.