Legend to leader: Warne had ambitions to coach England
Shane Warne had confided in close friends prior to his death that he had ambitions to coach England and boost the old enemy’s flagging fortunes.
Ricky Ponting believes great mate Warne would have been able to turn around Englandās flagging fortunes if given a chance to coach the old enemy.
The legendary legspinner had confided to friends, in the weeks prior to his death on Friday, about being seriously interested in leading England.
āIād like to do it, itās a great time to be England coachā¦ I think Iād do a pretty good job,ā Warne told the Sky Sports cricket podcast last month.
Several people, including Warneās long-time manager James Erskine, confirmed his coaching desire was genuine.
Fellow Australia legend Ponting had not heard about Warneās ambitions but thinks he knows why.
āHe didnāt (talk to me about that) because I would have tried talking him out of it pretty quickly,ā the former Australia captain told the ICC website.
āI think he had a pretty good idea of things to talk to me about and not talk to me about.
āBut he would have made a great coach.
āI know heās done a bit of it in The Hundred (with the London Spirit) but having someone like Shane Warne to take over the England cricket team now he would have done a great job.
āHeās a huge loss to the world game, whether he would have done some coaching or just the insights he gives through his commentary weāre all going to miss that.ā
In an emotional interview with fellow broadcaster Isa Guha, Ponting declared it was imperative to carry on Warneās legacy as one of the sharpest cricket minds the game he has ever known.
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āItās up to us now that are still here, and have that great passion for the game, to carry on Shaneās legacy that he left,ā Ponting said.
āIāve known him for a long time and I think I understood him pretty well, so itās up to me to let the world know what he was all about and hopefully Iāll be able to pass onto other people some of the things Iāve learnt from him.ā
Warneās death continues to reverberate around the world, with tributes continuing to flow for the charismatic larrikin, who is arguably Australiaās second-greatest cricketer after Sir Donald Bradman.
The MCG remains the most likely location for a state memorial service in coming weeks, with the cricket legendās family to hold a private funeral first.
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