A piece of Lord’s: cricket’s best memorabilia? - Stumped podcast, BBC World Service

Key Concepts

• Cricket Memorabilia: Items of personal significance related to cricket, such as accreditations, scorecards, commentary sheets, turf, bats, kit bags, armbands, and signed items.
• Value of Memorabilia: Discussed in terms of monetary value, sentimental value, historical significance, and potential for investment.
• Collecting Habits: Personal approaches to collecting, ranging from meticulous hoarding to discarding items due to space or spousal influence.
• Iconic Sporting Moments: Significant events and achievements on cricket grounds that hold historical and emotional weight.
• Charity Auctions: A common avenue for acquiring sporting memorabilia, often driven by the desire to contribute to societal benefit.
• Personal Significance vs. Monetary Value: The debate on whether an item's worth is derived from its cost or its personal meaning.

Cricket Memorabilia: A Discussion on Collecting and Value

This episode of "Stumped" features a discussion between Alison Mitchell, Matt Clinch, and Charu Sharma about their personal experiences and perspectives on collecting cricket memorabilia. The conversation is sparked by the MCC's decision to sell pieces of the Lord's playing surface to fans for £50 (approximately $67 USD) as they relay it for the first time in 23 years.

Personal Collections and Collecting Habits

• Alison Mitchell: As a journalist, Alison has kept all her accreditations, scorecards, and commentary sheets. She expresses regret at missing the opportunity to buy a piece of Lord's turf. She also possesses a portrait titled "Woman on Fire" from the Cricket Writers Club, of which she was the first female chair, though she doesn't display it prominently.
• Matt Clinch: Clinch admits to keeping many passes but has been encouraged by his wife to discard them over time. His wife did purchase Adam Zampa's kit bag for him from an op shop, which he now uses to store his cricket items. He notes that moving has necessitated getting rid of possessions.
• Charu Sharma: Sharma declared early in his sporting career that he is not a collector, prioritizing space and conducting annual clear-outs. He relates to Clinch's situation, with his wife also enforcing a policy against clutter. He recounts an instance where he reluctantly obtained a Viv Richards-signed bat for a friend, which was signed on the front, rendering it unusable for playing.
• Alison Mitchell (continued): She shares a golf armband from covering an Open Golf event with the BBC, which grants access to fairways and is dated. She also displays a pink cricket ball behind her, a memento from covering the first ever pink-ball Test match for ABC. She also owns a mini autograph bat from that inaugural day-night Test in Adelaide (2015, Australia vs. New Zealand), signed by the ABC commentary team. Additionally, she has a bat signed by the Channel Four cricket team from the 2005 Ashes series, where she worked as a runner. This bat includes autographs from Richie Benaud and other crew members, along with "pretty rude messages." She emphasizes that these items hold personal value only.

The Appeal of Lord's Turf and Iconic Grounds

The discussion then shifts to the idea of acquiring a piece of turf from any ground in the world.

• Alison Mitchell: She expresses a strong desire to purchase a piece of Lord's turf, citing its historical gravitas. She clarifies that the offered pieces are substantial, measuring 1.2m by 0.6 metres.
• Matt Clinch: He notes that selling turf hasn't been a common practice in Australia, although he hints at Australian cricketers approaching curators for offcuts. He speculates that if turf from Shane Warne's 700th Test wicket had been available, it would have sold out quickly.
• Charu Sharma: While initially hesitant to collect, Sharma admits he would spend £50 for a piece of Lord's turf due to its historical significance. He also identifies the 1983 Indian World Cup triumph at Lord's as a seminal moment for Indian cricket, attributing the sport's current success to that victory.

Favorite Moments on Lord's Turf

The participants share their most memorable moments associated with Lord's:

• Matt Clinch: He highlights Glenn McGrath's achievements at Lord's, including his 500th Test wicket in 2005.
• Alison Mitchell: She points to the two World Cup wins at Lord's: the women's in 2017 and the men's in 2019. She particularly emphasizes the 2017 women's win as a "seismic moment for a wider cause," as she was fortunate to call the winning moment.
• Charu Sharma: He reiterates the 1983 Indian World Cup triumph as the most significant moment, describing the scenes of Kapil Dev and the team celebrating.

The Monetary Value of Sporting History

The conversation delves into how much each person would be willing to pay for a piece of sporting history.

• Charu Sharma: After professing his non-collector status, he suggests a price of "not an arm and a leg," but acknowledges that £2500 would be an "investment amount" for something with perceived value.
• Matt Clinch: He believes a couple of thousand dollars would be a reasonable going rate for significant memorabilia. He also mentions that items are often available at charity auctions, where the contribution to society adds to their value. He suggests that well-kept and presented items can be more appealing.
• Alison Mitchell: She expresses a preference for acquiring items that hold personal meaning rather than purchasing signed items at auction. She would rather spend $5 on a cricket ball and have a player sign it, or have a player sign her accreditation from covering England's first global trophy win in 2010. She also mentions Simon Katich's room filled with bats and Dirk Nannes' extensive collection of team shirts, some of which have been repurposed into furniture.

Personal Mementos and Practicality

• Alison Mitchell: She frames her scorecard from Augusta in 1998, where she played, as a personal memento. She contrasts this with players taking stumps from matches, citing Sir Alastair Cook's use of Test match stumps as spindles in his staircase. She advocates for practical use of collected items.
• Matt Clinch: He suggests that a stump or a shirt with signatures might be easier to convince his wife about as an investment compared to turf. He emphasizes that items need to be "special or significant" to justify the investment and be a "collector's item."

Conclusion

The episode concludes with a reflection on the diverse approaches to collecting sporting memorabilia, from the sentimental to the potentially investment-driven. The shared passion for cricket and its history is evident, with participants valuing items that resonate with personal experiences and significant moments in the sport. The discussion highlights that while monetary value can be a factor, the emotional and historical significance often plays a more profound role in the appreciation of these cherished objects.