Beautiful Caulfield Cup nod honours cricket icon

There volition beryllium plentifulness of radical looking to the heavens if Benaud tin salute successful Saturday's esteemed Caulfield Cup.

The grey gelding is named successful honour of legendary cricketer and commentator Richie Benaud, who was an Australian tv favourite earlier he died successful 2015.

The connections of the John O'Shea-trained runner had the Aussie icon successful caput erstwhile they named the horse, and they volition beryllium cheering him connected successful 1 of the country's astir revered turf races.

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Benaud was a equine racing enthusiast, and often took to speechmaking retired likelihood and contention results portion commentating cricket Tests connected television.

"The information the sanction was adjacent disposable was fantastic," trainer O'Shea told 9News.

"We jumped astatine it, due to the fact that it's specified a chill sanction and he's specified a chill horse.

Benaud volition tally successful the 2022 Caulfield Cup successful honour of legendary cricketer and commentator Richie Benaud. (Getty)

Daphne Benaud with a equine called Benaud, named successful honour of the large Richie. (Steven Siewert)

"It would beryllium chill to triumph for us, but it would beryllium bully to triumph for (Benaud's wife) Daph and each his aged acquaintances."

Benaud's widow, Daphne, visited the stables connected Thursday to conscionable the grey equine who volition transportation her precocious husband's sanction astatine Caulfield.

She brought Benaud's baggy greenish cap, and formed an contiguous transportation with the gelding.

"It was instant love," Daphne said of the horse.

"(Richie) would beryllium delighted. I don't cognize if helium would enactment wealth connected it successful lawsuit it enactment the equine off, but helium would beryllium delighted to travel it.

"It's beautifully bred arsenic well, by Reliable Man retired of Baggy Green, which gives it an contiguous cricket connotation.

"Hopefully Richie was the reliable antheral part."

Benaud is listed arsenic a $9 accidental with astir bookmakers to triumph the Caulfield Cup.

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