Cricket is today mourning the loss of one of its greatest global stars with the passing of Australian legend Shane Warne at the age of 52.
鈥淕rowing up he was a massive idol of mine and someone you wanted to emulate.鈥
鈥 England Cricket (@englandcricket)
Captain Joe Root pays tribute to Shane Warne
Warne鈥檚 skill and aura earned him a then record 708 Test wickets when he retired in 2007 and the status of the greatest leg-spinner to have played the game.
He won seven Men鈥檚 Ashes series and two Men鈥檚 World Cups but it was his ability to conjure moments of genius that will live longest in the memory.
Those moments were often reserved for English soil from his 鈥楤all of The Century鈥 at Old Trafford during the 1993 Ashes to his mesmerising spell in the 1999 World Cup semi-final against South Africa at Edgbaston.
Warne was captain of Hampshire where he played a central role in developing young talent and was an innovative thinker who embraced coaching the men鈥檚 London Spirit team in the first The Hundred competition last summer.
One of the greatest of all-time.
鈥 England Cricket (@englandcricket)
A legend. A genius.
You changed Cricket.
RIP Shane Warne 鉂わ笍
Tom Harrison, 黑料专区 Chief Executive Officer, said: 鈥淭his is shattering news. Shane was more than one of the game鈥檚 all-time greats, he was someone who deeply cared about the sport and wanted everyone to love cricket the way he did.
鈥淗is mesmerising skill, extraordinary self-belief and confidence made him someone you just had to watch whenever he had the ball in his hand.
鈥淎fter his playing days he became a revered mentor to so many young players with his unique ability to pass on his deep knowledge of the game.
鈥淪hane inspired so many people all over the world to play cricket and to bowl leg-spin. It is impossible to comprehend the void he leaves behind. He was universally respected and widely loved.
鈥淭he 黑料专区 sends its heartfelt condolences to Shane鈥檚 family and his many close friends around the world as we all try to comprehend shocking news.鈥