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'Sachin casually asked me if Shane would play...': Former RR coach shares never-heard-before IPL story of Warne
Shane Warne, who is called the "first Royal" by the team, died from a suspected heart attack aged 52 on March 4. He led the team to IPL crown in the inaugural edition back in 2008.
Tournament debutants Gujarat Titans are set to take on a Shane Warne-inspired Rajasthan Royals in Sunday's IPL final. Both teams have had a stellar journey but Gujarat and Rajasthan have a distinct set of goals to accomplish. While Gujarat look to script history in their first-ever IPL spell, Rajasthan aim to lift the IPL crown for Warne. Fourteen years ago, Warne led underdogs Rajasthan to glory in the marquee T20 tournament's inaugural season. IPL 2022 Full Coverage
As Sanju Samson's men face first-timers Gujarat in a season that began just weeks after Warne's demise, former Rajasthan assistant coach Monty Desai has shared his memories of the spin icon. Desai, who also worked with the franchise as head scout, narrated how he met legendary Sachin Tendulkar, who was curious to know if Warne was going to play the game against Mumbai Indians.
"My first-hand experience with Warnie was in 2009. He was very particular about ensuring that we didn’t reach the stadium too early. This was done because we organized some good preparatory camps before the start of the tournament and the match days were all about preserving energy," Desai told Sportskeeda.
"Another interesting anecdote is about the game against Mumbai that Warnie was not supposed to play that season. It was in Durban if I recall correctly. That morning, I bumped into Sachin Tendulkar at the breakfast table and he casually asked me if Warnie would play the game. I jumped to the conclusion that he wouldn’t.
"Obviously, after a while, I realized that I had done something wrong, so I straightaway headed to Warnie’s room and told him everything. Both he and Chuck (Darren Berry, former director of coaching with RR) understood my situation and told me to relax. To my surprise, he just got ready and went for the match!" he further added.
Warne, who is called the "first Royal" by the team, died from a suspected heart attack aged 52 on March 4. Rajasthan fans were even spotted holding lifesize posters of Warne during the Qualifier-2 against Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Jos Buttler hit an unbeaten 106 to lead his Rajasthan into the IPL final, which will be played at the world's largest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad. The in-form Englishman paid rich tribute to Warne after his batting exploits helped the team inch closer to the second IPL title.
On emulating Warne in reaching the final, Buttler said: "You mention Shane Warne, he is such an influential figure for the Rajasthan Royals and having led the team to success in that first season, we will miss him dearly, but we know he is looking down on us with a lot of pride today."
Captain Samson also shared his "vague" memory of Warne steering Rajasthan to the IPL title in the inaugural season. 14 years hence, the Indian batter has a chance to replicate Warne's heroics.
"I was very young and it was the first IPL season and I remember playing an under-16 game somewhere in Kerala and I remember watching the last game with my friends and remember that last run where Shane Warne and Sohail Tanvir hit the run and they were running, it was a very vague memory which I have," said Samson.
