Australia's former leg-spinner Shane Warne celebrates his 50th birthday today.
Australia's legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne turned 50 on September 13.
Warne is widely regarded as one of the greatest spinners in cricket history, and is the only player alongside Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan to take more than 1000 international wickets.
The Aussie great made his international debut in 1992 against India in a Test match in Sydney. He went on to become the second-highest wicket-taker in the longest format of the game, with 708 wickets in 145 Tests. However, he was the first to breach the 700-wicket mark.
He also holds the record of most Test runs scored without a century (3154).
He represented Australia in 194 ODIs, taking 293 wickets. He lifted the 1999 World Cup with the national side and was also the man of the match in the final of the tournament. In a one-sided encounter, he dismissed four Pakistani batsmen as Australia bowled the side out for 132, cruising to an 8-wicket win.
Shane Warne's career, however, was plagued by multiple scandals off-the-field. Ahead of the 2003 World Cup, he was tested positive for a banned substance and was subsequently suspended from participating in international cricket for a year. He was also involved in a bookmaker scandal in the early stages of his career, alongside Mark Waugh.
His personal life has been subject to scrutiny throughout his playing career as well. He was stripped off the national team's vice-captaincy over indecent messages to a British nurse, and was also involved in an altercation with teenage boys after they clicked him smoking.
After his retirement, Warne played franchise cricket in multiple nations. He most famously led Rajasthan Royals to victory in the first-ever season of the Indian Premier League. He also served as the side's coach after his retirement, and currently serves as its Team Mentor.
