Shane Warne honoured in tribute during Australia Sri Lanka Test series
The tribute to Shane Warne at the Test match in Galle included the unveiling of the 'Shane Warne Stand' sign, reflecting his legacy and affection from fans and family.
Shane Warne's family has celebrated a tribute to the late Australian cricket legend at the Test side's clash with Sri Lanka in Galle.
The first match of the Warne-Murali series, named in honour of the Aussie spin king and Sri Lanka's 800-wicket hero Mattiah Muralitharan, got underway on Wednesday.
Warne is beloved in Galle, where he took his 500th Test wicket in 2004, after helping rebuild the city -- and the stadium -- after the Boxing Day tsunami later that year.
The gesture is still remembered to the point that fans erected a 'Shane Warne Stand' sign on the Galle Fort for the opening day of the first Test.
The official Shane Warne Stand at the MCG was unveiled at a memorial after his death in 2022.
Three months later, Australia embarked on a lengthy tour of Sri Lanka with the first Test in Galle dedicated to the Victorian.
Official acknowledgements followed this time when skippers Steve Smith and Dhananjaya De Silva unveiled the Warne-Murali trophy before the match.
But the 'Shane Warne Stand' sign was perhaps the most fitting tribute. "I think it's awesome. Thank you to the Sri Lankans who have done this. It looks amazing," Warne's son Jackson said.
"And if you'll notice as well the colours are actually red, white and black, which is the colours of Shane Warne Legacy and the colours of St Kilda Football Club. Shoutout to you guys. It looks awesome and dad would be so happy."
Jackson's sister Brooke also celebrated the "amazing" gesture while their mother and Warne's ex-wife Simone Callahan responded with a love heart.
Further tributes will likely follow if -- or when -- Australian spinner Nathan Lyon takes his third wicket of the series. He is just two behind Warne for the most by an Aussie bowler against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka.
Warne took 37 wickets in 14 innings against Sri Lanka and bolstered his record in the country with 11 wickets in a single Test against Pakistan in Colombo in 2002.
Mitchell Starc could also conceivably overhaul Warne by the end of the two-match series. The left-arm paceman entered the first Test with 29 wickets against Sri Lanka in the country.
