Shane Warne recently took another step to cement his phenomenal cricketing legacy by pitching to be considered for the role of head coach for the Australian team in the upcoming Twenty20 series.
The legendary bowler joins the likes of Ryan Harris, Jason Gillespie and Michael Hussey as contenders for the post of caretaker coach in February’s contest against Sri Lanka.
Although Warne has previously worked with Cricket Australia in helped the team’s spinners in South Africa two years ago, his rocky relationship with the organisation and his notorious temperament could work against him.
The T20 coaching role is up for grabs as head coach Darren Lehmann will be overseeing the test series in India. But whilst the likes of Justin Langer could represent a safe bet for taking over the T20 team thanks to his recent success in the West Indies, there are those who are calling for Cricket Australia to take a gamble on Warne.
This is because Warne has already illustrated that he can inspire a team to great things. In 2008 he helped Rajasthan Royals to an Indian Premier League title after a typically dramatic victory over Chennai Super Kings.
And although he didn’t manage to command the Rest of the World team to victory at 2014’s Bicentenary Celebration match, such is the regard held for Warne amongst Australia’s cricket fans that he could stand a good outside chance.
What’s holding back the star is his fiery personality with his on-going feud with Cricket Australia chief Pat Howard being an obstacle that’s going to be difficult to overcome. In addition to this is the never-ending tabloid fascination with the more unsavoury aspects of Warne’s lifestyle.
Whilst Warne’s lacklustre poker exploits shows that he could use some experience from the online games over at Lucky Nugget Casino, his dodgy sponsorship deals with hair-loss companies and high-profile infidelities illustrates that he’s showing no signs of growing up anytime soon.
Warne has also shown plenty of ill judgement on the pitch in recent years. The clash with Marlon Samuels not only served Warne with a fine and a match ban, but the after-effects also showed how the star has become notorious in the online domain too.
With the star frequently taking to Twitter to blast the Australian team and conduct his romantic liaisons, it shows that nowhere is safe from this charismatic cricketer. And although there’s no sign that Warne has taken to the online blackjack tables, it’s surely only a matter of time.
