SYDNEY:
Adam Gilchrist and
Ian Healy, the two men who watched
Shane Warne at closest quarters as he spun his way to 708 Test wickets, have paid tribute to the Australia cricketing great in the wake of his death at the age of 52.
Warne died of a suspected heart attack on the Thai island of
Koh Samui
on Friday, plunging Australia into mourning at the loss of one of the country's most popular sportsmen.
As Australia's wicketkeepers for the majority of Warne's 15-year career, Gilchrist and Healy were well placed to observe the skill of the man many consider to be the best spin bowler of all time.
"Numb," Adam Gilchrist wrote on Twitter. "The highlight of my cricketing career was to keep wicket to Warnie. Best seat in the house to watch the maestro at work.
"Have often felt a tad selfish, that Heals and I pretty much exclusively are the only ones who had that thrill and pleasure at test level."
Warne rated Gilchrist above Healy in his "best Australia XI" in 2015 on the grounds that he was a better batsman, but conceded that the decision had been a tough one.
Healy, who kept wickets for
Warne
until he hung up his gloves in 1999, said he had particularly enjoyed watching the spinner bamboozling batsmen with his games.
"I think Warne's the best bowler there's ever been," Healy told Channel Nine on Saturday.
"His greatest skill was to put a ball where he needed to for this particular batsman for long periods of time.
"To score runs for a sustained period of time against Warne's accuracy and ability to spin the ball was nearly impossible.
"His accuracy gave him great confidence and then he could spend his energy talking to the batsman, putting challenges out to them, criticising them and even ... complimenting them."
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