Shane Warne to land posthumous gong in Queen’s Birthday Honours List

03/10/2022

Iconic cricketer Shane Warne is set to be posthumously awarded one of Australia’s greatest honours in the next Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

The decision to award Warne with the Order of Australia will mean he is inducted in the official pantheon of the nation’s most notable achievements by its greatest citizens.

Appointments in the Order of Australia are traditionally not awarded posthumously, but if a candidate is put forward before his or her death their nomination can still be considered.

Daily Mail Australia reported that Warne had been nominated and the correct forms were received by the Australian Honours and Awards Secretariat before his tragic death.

Warne, who died aged 52 last Friday in Thailand, will likely be made an Officer or Member of the Order of Australia, which are the second and third highest levels in the award system respectively.

The highest level, Companion of the Order of Australia, was granted to Sir Donald Bradman but is generally not considered for sportspeople.

Consideration of a nomination can take between 18 months and two years, and nominations for Orders of Australia can be made by anyone.

Awards are decided upon by the independent 19-member Council for the Order of Australia, but it is believed that senior figures would support Warne’s recognition.

Orders of Australia are announced twice a year: on Australia Day and the second Monday of June when the Queen's Birthday is celebrated in most states.

It is possible the King of Spin had been previously nominated and the application was dismissed. Warne's captains Allan Border, Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting are all Officers of the Order of Australia (AO).

Warne’s former teammates Mark Waugh, Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Glenn McGrath and wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist are all Members of the Order of Australia (AM).

Warne's first Australian coach Bob Simpson is also an AM, while Simpson's onetime opening partner Bill Lawry received the same award while he was a commentator.

Even Trinidadian legend Brian Lara and Indian superstar Sachin Tendulkar are Members of the Order of Australia, despite not being citizens.

It is speculated that Warne’s highly-publicised womanising and off-the-field antics have stopped him from being officially honoured.

Warne was fined for accepting money from an Indian bookmaker in exchange for pitch and weather information in 1994, but Waugh did the same.

Adored by millions around the world, the charismatic Warne is considered by many as the greatest bowler to ever play the game.

His illustrious international career spanned 15 years and saw him take 708 Test wickets – the most ever by an Australian and only behind Muttiah Muralitharan in the all-time standings – as well as the most wickets in Ashes history, with 195.

Warne – who played in 145 Tests between 1992 and 2007 – reinvigorated cricket with his mastery of leg spin bowling.

The only Australian whose cricket achievements certainly top Warne's is Bradman, whose 6,996 runs in 52 Tests at an average of 99.94 may never be beaten.

Cricket Australia inducted Warne into its Hall of Fame in 2013 and he joined the International Cricket Council's Hall of Fame the following year.

His portrait hangs in the Long Room at Lord's – where he is an honorary life member of the Marylebone Cricket Club – along with images of Bradman and Australian allrounder Keith Miller.

A bronze statue of Warne was unveiled outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 2011 and Victorian Premier Dan Andrews announced the MCG's Great Southern Stand is to be renamed the SK Warne Stand.

The news comes after Warne’s family accepted an offer from the Victorian government and Prime Minister Scott Morrison of a state funeral.

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