Legendary Australia leg-spinner Shane Warne has died, aged 52. Warne's management released a statement on March 4. Warne passed away in Koh Samui, Thailand, as per a report by Fox Sports Australia. The cause of death is suspected heart attack.
“Shane was found unresponsive in his villa and despite the best efforts of medical staff, he could not be revived,” the statement read.
“The family requests privacy at this time and will provide further details in due course," the statement further read.
Warne is second on the list of highest wicket-takers in the red-ball format. He played 145 Tests and took 708 wickets at an average of 25.41 including 37 five-wicket hauls and 10 10-wicket hauls. Made his debut in 1992, Warne is only behind Sri Lankan great Muttiah Muralitharan on the list. The Victoria-born spinner contributed with the bat as well in the longest format. He has 3,154 runs at an average of 17.32 from 199 innings. He has 12 half-centuries to his name including a 99-run knock.
He represented Australia in 194 ODIs and bagged 293 wickets at an average of 25.73. He has 1,018 runs from 107 innings in the 50-over format. Warne made his last international appearance in Ashes 2006-07.
He never represented Australia in T20I cricket as it was still a new format at the internationals stage when he was considering retirement. However, he represented various T20 franchises around the world and made an impact. In 2008, Warne led Rajasthan Royals (RR) to Indian Premier League (IPL) title win in the inaugural edition.
It has been a sad 24-hour period for Australian cricket. Earlier on March 4, Australia's wicketkeeping great Rod Marsh died of heart attack. Warne also tweeted about Marsh earlier in the day.
