Disgraced Australian cricketer Shane Warne said on Wednesday he was considering returning to one-day international cricket when his drugs ban expired next February.
Warne announced with great fanfare last January that the World Cup in South Africa would be his last limited-over international tournament.
He said at the time he planned to retire to prolong his Test career for a further five years. But the following month he was thrown out of the game for 12 months after testing positive to a banned diuretic just prior to
the World Cup.
Australia’s greatest Test wicket-taker said on Wednesday his enforced absence from cricket had made him reconsider his options.
”I retired from one-day cricket to prolong my Test career and at this stage that’s something I am reconsidering with the enforced lay-off,” Warne told Channel 10 on Wednesday.
Warne was among 25 players who received contracts on Wednesday from the Australian Cricket Board for the 2003-04 season, though he will only be paid part of his retainer on a pro-rata basis when his ban is lifted next February.
Warne tested positive for the drugs hydrochlorothiazide and amiloride early this year but said they were from a weight loss drug he was taking.
While both diuretics are normally used to aid temporary weight loss, they can also serve as masking agents for performance-enhancing drugs.
The Australian Cricket Board (ACB) and the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) cannot agree whether 33-year-old warne can play in charity and testimonial games during his ban.
They are seeking a ruling from an independent arbitrator on the issue. ACB directors decided earlier this month that the high-profile legspinner could not take part in any organised cricket matches, including charity and testimonial games, during his 12-month ban.
But the the players’ union is now involved because the two bodies have different interpretations of the memorandum of understanding between them. Warne has received an offer to play for Lashings, an English
charity side, during his suspension.
Warne is Australia’s greatest wicket-taker with 491 in 107 Tests and needs 29 wickets to overtake West Indian Courtney Walsh’s world mark of 519 Test wickets. – Sapa-AFP