Former Pakistani pacer Wasim Akram paid tribute to his ‘close friend’ Shane Warne, who passed away on 4th March. He said that when he heard about his untimely death, he couldn’t sleep that night.
Shane Warne’s sudden demise jolted the entire cricket fraternity. The former Australian spinner on Saturday (4th March) passed away due to a suspected heart attack at his villa in Thailand.
Warne was arguably the best spinner the game has ever witnessed with over 1000 wickets across formats. He is the second-highest wicket-taker in the history of Test cricket with 708 scalps in 145 matches and also bagged 293 ODI wickets in 194 matches.
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Speaking to Fox cricket, Wasim Akram was shocked by Shane Warne’s untimely demise. He admitted that he was in regular touch with his ‘close friend’ for the last 5-6 years and the spin wizard defined the phrase ‘larger than life’.
"I am still in shock like everyone else. I was in regular touch with him during the last five to six years. We became very close friends because he was a family friend of my wife and in-laws. And my heart goes out to his parents Keith and Brigett and his kids Jackson, Brooke and Summer. You know when you listen and read about this phrase 'larger than life', that was Shane Warne," Wasim Akram said.
Shane Warne last played a cricket match in 2015. He along with Sachin Tendulkar took around 50 retired cricketers for three matches between Shane's Warriors and Sachin's Blasters in USA.
Akram recalled how Shane Warne was the ‘heart of everything’ when retired cricketers played a league in the USA a few years back.
"About 4-5 years ago, Shane and Sachin Tendulkar took 50 of us... all the retired cricketers to USA for three games in New York, LA and Houston. And he was just the heart of everything. Every night he was organising stuff for the boys, either dinner or going out. He knew everyone, everywhere. It's just unbelievable what exactly happened. I can't fathom it as yet like anyone else," he said.
Akram hailed Warne as the cricketer of the century and remarked that the Australian legend will be missed by every cricket lover across the globe.
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"He would bowl 50-60 overs a day in Test cricket. Nowadays you can't even think about it. Ball of the century, cricketer of the century and in my opinion, person of the century as well. What a man. My heart goes to all the Australians. I know how big he was as a cricketer, superstar and entertainer. He will be missed big time, not just by his friends, colleagues, but every cricket lover," he added.
Wasim Akram further talked about how passionate was Shane Warne about commentary. He called him a loyal friend and revealed that when he heard about his death, he couldn’t sleep that night.
"Coming back to his cricket commentary, he was passionate. He always had new ideas, was ready to go do something new and different, and every friend and colleague of him had one word to say about him and that is loyalty. He was a very loyal friend. It's very tough to even talk about him right now. When I found out about him, I couldn't sleep that night. It will take me time to come to terms to even understand what is happening,” he concluded.
(Fox cricket inputs)
