Shane Warne – the starry-eyed boy from suburban Melbourne who became the king of spin – has been remembered as an irreplaceable cricket giant, an Aussie larrikin and a doting father, during a star-studded state memorial service at his beloved Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Wednesday night’s service culminated with the renaming of the MCG’s largest stand in his honour to immortalise his record-breaking career, causing the crowd of adoring fans to erupt into cheers of “Warnie”.
The memorial service was attended by cricket legends, celebrities and political leaders, all paying tribute to one of the game’s most popular figures.
It featured video musical tributes and dedications by Warne’s celebrity friends Sir Elton John, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Robbie Williams and Ed Sheeran. There were also live performances by singers Jon Stevens and Anthony Callea.
The cricket great’s father, Keith Warne, commemorated his son as a doting father, a loving son and a caring brother, telling the crowd he was grateful the world loved Warne as much as he and his wife, Brigitte, did. Warne’s death was the family’s “darkest day”.
Keith recounted a time Warne visited children in the Victorian town of Kinglake after the catastrophic 2009 Black Saturday bushfires, spending a day playing sports with families to lift their spirits.
“This was Shane,” he said. “Leading with infectious energy, his giving and that beaming smile. He somehow could always manage to make someone’s day that little bit better.
“He was a person who made everybody feel very special. He was always about putting smiles on other people’s faces. Kids loved him and he loved kids.”
Summer Warne – the spin king’s youngest child – told the crowd about the last time she saw her father. Days before leaving for Thailand, Warne arrived at her house to pick up his bag with Bryan Adams’ hit Summer of ’69 blaring from his car.
“We both started dancing with not a care in the world … looking back at that memory now, it is so incredibly special,” she said.
Her brother, Jackson, told the crowd he felt “robbed” at having his father taken from him but reminisced of time spent enjoying the “simple things” – grocery shopping, watching movies and going for walks during Covid lockdowns.
His father had never pressured him to take up cricket and “just wanted him to be happy”.
The event also showcased memories from Warne’s former teammates and opponents. During a panel discussion, Warne’s first Test captain, Allan Border, said the spin bowler had helped “revitalise” his captaincy.
“I was lucky to have two years with Shane and just thank him for that,” he said.
The former England captain Nasser Hussain, who travelled to Australia from the UK for the event, said he found “no delight” playing against Warne on the field.
“He was the king bowler, the great bowler – but also the great sledger,” he said.
The memorial was attended by the prime minister, Scott Morrison, and the opposition leader, Anthony Albanese, and was broadcast live across Australia, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh and the UK – all places where Warne’s revival of the art of leg spin bowling inspired a legion of fans.
Throughout the two-and-a-half-hour service, video tributes were played in the stadium from what the MC, Eddie McGuire, described as a “galaxy of stars” who Warne called friends.
The actor Hugh Jackman remembered Warne as someone who “sucked the marrow out of life”, while the singer Danni Minogue described the cricketer as “Mr Sunshine”. McGuire also read a letter from the businessman James Packer, who said he and his family had “lost their sunshine” too early.
A video featured Chris Martin performing Coldplay’s hit Yellow from Central America.
“You may hear a rooster in the distance, which I am thinking of as him because he and a rooster shared some qualities,” Martin joked.
The MCG is where Warne claimed his 700th Test wicket in 2006 and took his hat trick against England in the 1994 Ashes. It was where he was most celebrated.
Warne died of a heart attack in Thailand on 4 March aged 52. A private funeral service was held for him on 20 March.
