Melbourne [Australia], September 13 (ANI): Late Australian spin wizard Shane Warne would have turned 57 on Sunday. From his rival territory of England to the Indian audiences, 'Warnie' mesmerised one and all with his skill of leg-spin bowling that turned into art and a spell of magic when he took the ball in his hands through an international career that lasted 15 years, from 1992 to 2007.
Warne was known for being a 'party animal' who loved his drinks, food and poker as much as he loved his favourite weapon: the red-cherry. The spinner became a superstar and a headline machine on and off the pitch, not only for reviving a once-dying art of leg spin, but also for several records, controversies and memories he left behind before his demise in March 2022 due to a heart attack. Moolah, entertainment and prodigious skill were a guarantee when Warne was in action, and it would be safe to say that cricket has not seen a figure as larger-than-life.
Here are some of the major records that spin prodigy holds till this day:
*First to 600, 700 Test wickets: Warne was the first-ever bowler to achieve 600 and 700 Tests, achieving both milestones against England at Manchester, 2005 and Melbourne in 2007.
*Most wickets against an opponent in Test cricket: Warne took a total of 195 wickets against England in 36 Tests at an average of 23.25, with 11 five-wicket hauls and four ten-fers, the most by a cricketer against an opponent in Tests and also the most by a bowler in the history of Ashes series.
*Most wickets in a single calendar year in Tests: In 2005, Warne took a total of 96 Test scalps at an average of 22.02, with nine four-fers, six five-fors and two ten-fors, with best figures of 6/46, a record which still stands. This also included a chart-topping performance in the Ashes 2005 in UK, with 40 wickets in five Tests at an average of 19.92, with five four-wicket hauls and three five-wicket hauls and best figures of 6/46.
*Most Test runs without a century: The leg-spinner could also fight it out with the bat too, scoring 3,154 runs in 145 Tests and 199 innings at an average of 17.32, with 12 fifties and best figures of 99.
*Most five-wicket hauls by an Australian in Tests: Warne has taken a total of 37 Test five-wicket hauls, the most by an Aussie bowler and overall second-highest, with Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (67) at the top.
*Australia's most successful ODI spinner: Warne is Australia's most successful spinner in ODIs and overall-third-highest wicket-taker with 291 scalps at an average of 25.82, including 12 four-fers and a fifer, with best figures of 5/33.
*Most 'Player of the Match' awards by an Australian: He has 17 'Player of the Match' awards for Australia in Tests, the most among Aussie players and the third-most overall, with South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis (23) at the top.
*The man for the knockout stages: In six ICC knockout stage matches across the Cricket World Cup and the ICC Champions Trophy, Warne has taken 15 wickets at an average of 15.53, with three four-fers and best figures of 4/29. He is among the top five wicket-takers in ICC tournament knockouts, with Glenn McGrath (22 in 14 matches) at the top. This included POTM performances against West Indies in 1996 World Cup semifinals and against South Africa, Pakistan in the semis and final of the 1999 WC.
*Most Test ten-wicket hauls by an Australian: Warne secured 10 ten-fors in 145 Tests, the most by an Aussie and overall second-highest next to Muralitharan (22).
Warne finished his international career with 708 Test wickets and a further 293 in One-Day Internationals, placing him second on the list of all-time international wicket-takers behind his great friend and rival Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka at 1,347. Warne, known to his Baggy Green mates as 'Warnie', also captained Australia in 11 One-Day Internationals, winning 10 and losing just once. (ANI)
A look at late Shane Warne's stunning records on his 57th birth anniversary
