Legendary Australia leg-spinner Shane Warne, one of the greatest cricketers of all time, died of a suspected heart attack aged 52 at his Thailand villa. Warne took 708 Test wickets, the second most of all time, in 145 matches across a stellar 15-year international career. His management company said Warne had been found unresponsive in his villa on the Thai island Koh Samui on Friday. "It is with great sadness we advise that Shane Keith Warne passed away of a suspected heart attack," they said. "Despite the best efforts of medical staff, he could not be revived. "The family requests privacy at this time and will provide further details in due course. "Warne helped Australia win the 1999 50-over World Cup and claimed 293 dismissals in 194 one-day internationals between 1993 and 2005.
Warne has always been a flamboyant figure in the history of cricket and was quite a controversial player during his hey days.A fortnight before the ICC Cricket World Cup 2003 in South Africa, legendary Australia spinner Shane Warne had announced that he will call time on a decade-long ODI career after playing his third World Cup.Having dismissed 291 batsmen in 193 ODIs at an average of 25.82, an economy rate of 4.25 and a strike rate of 36.4, Warne was Australia’s highest wicket-taker at the time he played his last ODI in January 2003. The illustrious spinner was the sixth-highest wicket-taker among all bowlers around the world in the format.The fourth match of the tournament was Australia’s opener against Pakistan in Johannesburg. It was on the eve of the match that the Australian board had called for a press conference to announce that Warne was returning home due to failing a routine drug test. Warne had tested positive for consuming a diuretic known as Moduretic. In what was a prescription drug widely used in the treatment of hypertension, high blood pressure and fluid retention, it was banned for its possible usage as a masking agent for steroids by diluting traces of the substance in the urine. The drug was also commonly used to reduce weight by ridding the body of any excess fluids.
“For Warnie [Shane Warne], who’s been playing international cricket for a decade, to ignore that approach is madness,” the then Australian captain Ricky Ponting was quoted as saying a night before captaining Australia for the first time in a World Cup. Upon his return in Melbourne, Warne admitted to consuming a tablet given to him by his mother on January 22 to make sure that he looks good in front of the camera and that it had nothing to do with making any banned substance. “Contrary to speculation, taking it had nothing to do with the treatment for my shoulder injury or for masking any banned substance,” Warne said. In his defence, Warne also mentioned that he did not read the ACB’s playing conditions and that him consuming such a table without knowing about its components was “a reckless act, totally disregarding the consequences”. Warne also hinted at the torn packaging not allowing him to read the list of ingredients. Warne was subsequently banned for a year contrary to ACB’s directive of banning him for two years. It is said that the leniency was adopted after listening to Dr. Peter Harcourt’s advise.
