SYDNEY, June 4: Australian spin legend Shane Warne said on Wednesday he was “happily retired” from Test cricket and had no intention of staging a dramatic comeback.

Warne was responding to speculations that he would be tempted back into bamboozling the world’s top batsmen by Stuart McGill’s surprise retirement announcement this week.

“I’ve got no interest at all at this stage. I’m very happily retired, I’m comfortable where I’m at the moment,” he told reporters on arrival at the Melbourne Airport.

Warne, 38, who retired from international cricket in January 2007 with a then world record 708 Test wickets, last month raised the prospect of a return for next year’s Ashes series against England if MacGill was injured.

But he said on Wednesday those comments did not apply to the current situation.

“I actually said I was happily retired and if Stuart MacGill broke his leg — which he hasn’t, he’s retired — and there was no other spinner in Australia and if Ricky (Ponting) asked me, I’d consider it,” Warne stated.

“If that’s coming back out of retirement, I’m not sure. I don’t think it is.”

MacGill called it quits on his 44-Test career on Sunday midway through the second Test against the West Indies in Antigua after admitting that at 37 he was no longer up to the rigours of international cricket.

The veteran, who spent much of his playing career in Warne’s shadow, only made the Australian tour of the Caribbean after overcoming serious knee and wrist injuries.—AFP

Opinion

Editorial

Short-changed?
Updated 24 Nov, 2024

Short-changed?

As nations continue to argue, the international community must recognise that climate finance is not merely about numbers.
Overblown ‘threat’
24 Nov, 2024

Overblown ‘threat’

ON the eve of the PTI’s ‘do or die’ protest in the federal capital, there seemed to be little evidence of the...
Exclusive politics
24 Nov, 2024

Exclusive politics

THERE has been a gradual erasure of the voices of most marginalised groups from Pakistan’s mainstream political...
Counterterrorism plan
Updated 23 Nov, 2024

Counterterrorism plan

Lacunae in our counterterrorism efforts need to be plugged quickly.
Bullish stock market
23 Nov, 2024

Bullish stock market

NORMALLY, stock markets rise gradually. In recent months, however, Pakistan’s stock market has soared to one ...
Political misstep
Updated 23 Nov, 2024

Political misstep

To drag a critical ally like Saudi Arabia into unfounded conspiracies is detrimental to Pakistan’s foreign policy.