“Forever in our hearts”: Yusuf Pathan remembers his first IPL captain Shane Warne on his 53rd birth anniversary

Yusuf Pathan played under Shane Warne in IPL 2008, where Rajasthan Royals won the tournament by surprising everyone.

On the occasion of Shane Warne’s 53rd birth anniversary, the legendary spinner has been getting tributes from all over the cricketing fraternity. The leg-spinner from Australia passed away in March this year due to a suspected heart attack, and the whole cricket universe went in shock.

Warne, who made his debut against India was one of the two bowlers to take 1000 international wickets. He was the first bowler to surpass the mark of 700 test wickets. Shane Warne ended his test career with 708 test wickets and 293 ODI wickets.

Yusuf Pathan remembers Shane Warne on his 53rd birth anniversary

Former Indian all-rounder Yusuf Pathan remembered Shane Warne on his 53rd birthday anniversary. Pathan was a part of the Rajasthan Royals side which won the IPL 2008 title under the captaincy of Shane Warne. He called Warne one of the most inspirational captains he has played under.

ALSO READ: Sachin Tendulkar’s tribute to Shane Warne

“Remembering the legendary Shane Warne on his 53rd birthday anniversary. One of the most inspirational captains I played under. Forever in our hearts,” Yusuf Pathan tweeted.

Remembering the legendary @ShaneWarne on his 53rd birthday anniversary. One of the most inspirational captains I played under. Forever in our hearts. ❤️ #ShaneWarne

— Yusuf Pathan (@iamyusufpathan) September 13, 2022

Rajasthan Royals were called the weakest teams of the IPL 2008 due to the lack of star names on their team, but they surprised everyone by winning the title of the inaugural season. The guys like Yusuf Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja, Siddharth Trivedi, Sohail Tanvir, etc played way above the expectations.

Yusuf Pathan was at his very best in the IPL 2008, where he scored 435 runs at a strike-rate of 179.01 and scalped eight wickets in bowling. Warne knew how to use Pathan and his faith in the Indian all-rounder did wonder for the Rajasthan Royals side.

Pathan played a valuable part in the final match between Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings. He scalped 3 wickets by conceding just 22 runs in bowling, whereas he played a blinder of 56 runs in just 39 balls to earn Rajasthan Royals a famous win over the MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings.