WG Grace, arguably the greatest England cricketer of all time, gets a punk makeover as part of a drive to promote the Twenty20 Cup, the short form of the English county game.
London, June 12 : WG Grace, arguably the greatest England cricketer of all time, gets a punk makeover as part of a drive to promote the Twenty20 Cup, the short form of the English county game.
Grace has been given a mohican haircut for a new advertising campaign.
Grace's blond mohican resembles the cut recently sported by English batsman Kevin Pietersen.
In a viral ad, which will be seeded on video-sharing websites such as YouTube, Grace is shown taking off his England cap to reveal his radical new hairstyle.
Peter Jackson, chief executive of Marston's Beer Company, which is behind the campaign, said Grace was chosen because his crowd-pleasing batting would not be out of place in the Twenty20 game.
"WG Grace is still to this day revered for being the finest fielder in England as well as being behind the development of modern batting," The Telegraph quoted him, as saying.
"His unique passion and earnest commitment to the sport meant his performances commanded a big audience, and he single-handedly transformed the game into a national institution," Jackson added.
Tom Richardson, chief executive of Gloucestershire County Cricket Club, said: "WG Grace was the first 'superstar' of cricket. What a tremendous asset he would be to our Twenty20 team today."
The first round of Twenty20 Cup matches are to be played on Thursday.
Grace, nicknamed The Great Cricketer, is credited with pioneering modern batting techniques. He played 22 Tests for England after making his debut in 1880.
ANI