Artists in Moradabad pay tribute to Shane Warne

The cricketing world, with players and fans alike, is mourning the shocking and unfortunate demise of legendary Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne who passed away in Thailand due to a suspected heart attack on March 4.

In Moradabad, a group of artists paid tribute to the legendary leggie by making his portraits and lighting a candle in front of it.

These artists consider Warne as a great cricketer whose loss is a huge blow to the sport.

An artist named Mukesh said while talking to the media, "We are giving a tribute to Shane Warne through these portraits. He was a really great bowler and tricked many batsmen with his spin."

Another artist added, "He was a great bowler with a great technique. Warne had plenty of records to his name. He has taken over 1,000 international wickets, a record not yet touched by any other bowler."

Warne was one of the most influential cricketers in history. He almost single-handedly reinvented the art of leg-spin when he burst onto the international scene in the early 1990s, and by the time he retired from international cricket in 2007, he had become the first bowler to reach 700 Test wickets.

A central figure in Australia's ICC Cricket World Cup triumph in 1999, when he was player of the match in both the semi-final and the final, Wisden Cricketers' Almanack recognised Shane's achievements by naming him as one of its Five Cricketers of the Twentieth Century.

Shane finished his international career with 708 Test wickets and a further 293 in One-Day Internationals, placing him second in the list of all-time international wicket-takers behind his great friend and rival Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka (1,347). Shane also captained Australia in 11 One-Day Internationals, winning 10 and losing just once.

( With inputs from ANI )