Warne brought spin as attacking commodity to cricket – Ashwin
INDIA spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has condoled the demise of Shane Warne, saying the Australian brought spin as an attacking commodity to the cricketing world.
Warne died on Friday aged 52 due to a suspected heart attack.
“I see Warne as a flag-bearer for carrying the spin aspect of bowling on the front in the world cricketing map. The top three wicket-takers in the world are spinners in Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble.
He was an interesting character. So many Australian legends had so many nice things to say about him.
I still can’t accept the fact that life is so fickle. We cannot predict what can happen,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
“Shane Warne was a colourful character, he redefined bowling, he has taken more than 1000 international wickets, not many can achieve this rare feat. Shane Warne brought spin as an attacking commodity to this cricketing world. Everyone will talk about Warne’s delivery to Mike Gatting, but my favourite is Warne’s delivery to Andrew Strauss in 2005 Ashes.
He almost single-handedly fought for Australia in that series. He was a maestro. He was an extra-ordinary human being and he lived his life to the fullest,” he added.
Warne was one of the most influential cricketers in history. He almost single-handedly reinvented the art of leg-spin when he burst onto the international scene in the early 1990s, and by the time he retired from international cricket in 2007, he had become the first bowler to reach 700 Test wickets.
A central figure in Australia’s ICC Cricket World Cup triumph in 1999, when he was player of the match in both the semi-final and the final, Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack recognized Warne’s achievements by naming him as one of its Five Cricketers of the Twentieth Century.
Meanwhile, Warne’s children, son Jackson and daughters Brooke and Summer, on Monday released heart-breaking tributes to the legendary leg-spinner.
This is the first time that Warne’s children have spoken since the 52-yearold died in a villa at the Koh Samui Island of a suspected heart attack.
Jackson, who was seen in an Australian reality show ‘SAS: Who Dares Wins’ last year, spoke about the bond he had with his father.
“To my brother, my best friend, to my Dad, I love you so much.
“I don’t think anything is ever going to fill the void you have left in my heart. Sitting at the poker table, walking around the golf course, watching the Saints and eating pizza is never going to be the same. But I know all you ever wanted for me is to be happy, no matter what.”
Warne’s eldest daughter Brooke said she was yet to believe that he was no more.
“Dad, this doesn’t feel real and doesn’t make sense that you are not here with us anymore. It doesn’t feel right, you were taken away too soon and life is so cruel. I will forever cherish our final memories together laughing and joking around with each other.
We were happy.
“We were so similar in so many ways and I always used to joke that I got your genes and about how much that annoyed me! Well, now I couldn’t be happier and prouder that I have your genes.”
Warne’s youngest daughter Summer said she wished she could have hugged him tighter and felt that she was robbed of her time with him.
“Dad, I miss you so much already. I wish I could’ve hugged you tighter in what I didn’t know were my final moments with you.
And your final breaths were only moments away. I wish I could’ve told you that everything was going to be okay and hold your hand.
“You are the best Dad someone could ever ask for. Our time was robbed.
I want more holidays with you, more laughs where your smile lights up the whole room, more ‘goodnight I love you SJ, I’ll see you in the morning’, more talks about how our days were and just to feel safe when you would hug me and you would let me know how proud you are of me and how much you love me.
You haven’t died Dad, you’ve just moved to a different place, and that is in our hearts. I love you forever, until we meet again.”
Warne’s ex-wife Simone Callahan signed off by saying a line that summed up Warne for her. “Who brings a light so great to the world that even after they have gone the light remains.”