Remembering Shane Warne, The 'Bad Boy' of Cricket

From accepting money from bookmakers to failing a drug test, here are some of the infamous moments of his career.

Shane Warne passed away at the age of 52 on Friday.

Photo: Pragyan Ojha / Twitter

While he was nothing short of a magician on the field, who often made even the best of batters look foolish during his 16-year-long career, Shane Warne, who passed away at the age of 52 on Friday, 4 March, was often in the news for the wrong reasons during his playing days.

From accepting money from bookmakers to failing a drug test, we bring you some of the more infamous moments of his legendary career.

1994-95: Accepted Money from a Bookmaker

In 1998, when the cricket world was abuzz with the theories of match-fixing and if such a thing could take place in the 'gentlemen's game', it was revealed that Warne and his teammate, the stylish right-handed opener Mark Waugh, were fined by the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) in February 1995 for accepting money from an Indian bookmaker for divulging information about the pitch and weather conditions during the Australian tour of Sri Lanka in September 1994.

During the 1994 Australian tour of Sri Lanka for the Singer World Series, the two players were approached by the bookmaker, who had asked them questions about pitch and weather conditions in return for payment.

Waugh received $6000, while Warne got $5000. However, both players said they did not reveal any information about team lineups or tactics.

After an ACB investigation, Waugh was fined $10,000 and Warne $8000.

1999: Comments on Sri Lanka Captain Arjuna Ranatunga

Just before the start of the 1999 Cricket World Cup in England, Warne, who was the then vice-captain of the Australian team, told The Times newspaper that the cricket world would be better off without Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga.

Warne also said that Ranatunga's on-field behaviour was against the spirit of cricket and that most international players agreed with his view.

"There is plenty of animosity between Arjuna and myself. I don't like him, and I'm not in a club of one."

As a result, the International Cricket Council (ICC) fined him and handed him a two-match suspended ban.

"Warne's penalty is a fine of 50% of his first World Cup match fee and a suspended ban from two one-day international matches, which will be enforced on any further breach of the code of conduct in the next six months," the ICC had said.

2003: Failed Drug Test

Just a day before the start of the all-important cricket 2003 World Cup in South Africa, Shane Warne failed a drug test and was sent back home.

During a one-day series in Australia, Warne's sample returned a positive result for a banned diuretic. However, he denied taking performance-enhancing drugs and said he had unknowingly consumed the banned diuretic.

Warne said he had taken just one tablet of the prescription drug Moduretic, which was given to him by his mother to improve his appearance.

An ACB committee later found him guilty of breaching the Board's drug code and imposed a one-year ban on him from organised cricket. That also marked the end of his one-day international career.

2013: Feud with West Indies' Marlon Samuels in BBL

During a Big Bash League match in 2013, Warne, the Melbourne Stars skipper, was involved in a verbal duel with Melbourne Renegades' Marlon Samuels and even abused him.

However, things heated up quickly when Warne approached Samuels and grabbed his jersey. It was a retaliatory move by Warne as Samuels had grabbed Warne's teammate David Hussey earlier in the match when Hussey was batting.

Later, Warne was fined $4500 and suspended for a game after being found guilty of three charges: using obscene language, making inappropriate physical contact with a player or official and showing serious dissent at an umpire's decision.

The video of the incident also went viral on social media.