Australian spin legend Shane Warne’s sudden demise has left the cricket fraternity in a state of shock.
Warne, who was 52, passed away of a suspected heart attack on Friday (March 4). He was found unresponsive in his villa in Thailand and couldn’t be revived despite the best efforts of medical staff.
Ahead of the second day’s play between India and Sri Lanka in the ongoing Mohali Test, veteran batter Virat Kohli grieved the unfortunate death of Warne, saying he is still in shock and disbelief by the news.
"We got the sad news last night about the demise of Shane Warne. Out of nowhere, to be honest, we carry on doing what we do in life, we think everything is all about what we are doing in the present moment all are troubles and things going wrong and things that we look forward to. We realised very quickly that life is so unpredictable and fickle. We just need to be grateful for all the moments that we are alive. Passing at the age of 52 is something that is totally unexpected and went far too early. I stand here in disbelief and shock," Kohli said in a video posted by BCCI on Twitter.
"I got to know him off the field as well and the persona and charisma he brought to every conversation he was a part of, I can understand what he brought to the field as well. He was an honest man any conversation you had with him you can see the passion, spoke so clearly and he knows what he was saying. Live life king size just very grateful to have known him and to he was the greatest spinner that I have ever played in the game.
"Needless to say he surely will be missed. That I hope we can put things in the right perspective in life knowing how unpredictable things are. My deepest condolence to his family, his close ones, his children and his parents, I know how difficult it would be and they have all our support and they are in our thoughts. God bless his soul," he added.
India skipper Rohit Sharma too condoled the demise, calling it a huge loss in the cricketing world and added that Shane Warne inspired the whole new generation of cricketers.
"Absolutely devastated to hear the news of Shane Warne passing away. It's a huge huge loss in our cricketing world. And we do all understand his contribution to the cricketing world. He inspired the whole new generation of cricketers and he did wonders with the ball, we all know about that. So it's a huge huge loss, you know as soon as we got to hear, it was so sad and extremely sad to hear. But I just want to give condolences to his family, his three children and the loved ones," said Rohit in a video on BCCI's official Twitter account.
Shane Warne was widely regarded as the greatest spinner to have played the game. He represented Australia in 145 Tests, claiming 708 wickets at an average of 25.42 with 37 five-wicket hauls. He also picked up 293 wickets in 194 ODIs and played a key role in Australia’s 1999 World Cup triumph.
Following the international retirement, Warne showed his leadership credentials in the Indian Premier League (IPL), guiding Rajasthan Royals (RR) to the title in the inaugural season in 2008.
