If the show made a newspaper headline, invariably it involved Warne. His actions and utterances, however banal or bizarre, became news in Australia. He said he believed that aliens “made” the first humans out of monkeys and built the pyramids, confessed a fear of spiders and was bitten on the face by a non-venomous snake. Seemingly anything Warne-related had news value.

This is despite the fact Warne stopped terrorising Test cricket’s finest batsmen in 2007. He has swapped playing for commentating and the allure of the former leg-spinner shows no signs of abating in Australia.

His 708 Test wickets plus 293 in one-day internationals are 1001 reasons why this rough-hewn son of suburban Melbourne should hold a special place in the history of his sport-mad country.

Despite repeated controversies, it seems nothing can dim the headline power of the man teammates used to call Hollywood.

Charity case

It remains to be seen whether a simmering drama over his children’s charity, The Shane Warne Foundation, will tarnish Warne’s appeal with the Australian public. The charity recently closed, blaming “unwarranted speculation” about how much of its proceeds reached the needy.

Regardless of the outcome, most would predict Warne to keep barrelling on in the Teflon-coated way to which Australians have become accustomed. Not everyone loves him, but you certainly can’t escape him.

“He’s Australia’s biggest celebrity by far. No-one comes close and no-one ever will,” says Dr Steve Georgiakis, senior lecturer on sports studies at the University of Sydney.

“(Australian producer-director) George Miller won six Oscars for Mad Max: Fury Road, but at that time most people here were still talking about Warnie and what he was doing on I’m A Celebrity.”

One simple test highlights the Warne fascination. Google Steve Waugh – a revered cricketing hero and Australian of the Year in 2004 – and you’ll find 503,000 results. Another Australian captain, Ricky Ponting, will yield 521,000 results. Type Shane Warne and you’ll find 7,230,000.

“Kids now don’t really know much about Steve Waugh. But they all still know Shane Warne,” Dr Georgakis says.

Warne’s penchant for off-field controversy is well known. During his unrivalled playing career, he was involved in several sex scandals which led to the end of his marriage to Simone Callahan, and to his sacking as Australia vice-captain.

Among other dramas, the father of three was banned from cricket for a year in 2003 for taking a diuretic, which he maintained was not about enhancing his performance but his looks. He was punished for involvement with an Indian bookmaker and pilloried for snatching a camera from a teenage boy who’d taken his photograph while he was smoking. Warne had signed an endorsement deal with a nicotine-substitute manufacturer.

Another major media moment for the 46-year-old, who retired from all forms of cricket in 2013, was his surprise engagement to British model-actress Liz Hurley. The relationship ended three years ago and Warne has since said he’d like his “good friend” to return her engagement ring.

His net worth is commonly estimated at between A$30m (£17m) and A$50m. And like many Hollywood celebrities, he’s turned to doctors to to keep up his looks. He admits to using Botox, but denies persistent rumours he’s had plastic surgery.

‘Do gooders get stuffed’

But more than anything, it’s what comes out of Warne’s mouth that generates controversy.

After Australia won last year’s World Cup, Warne was slammed for conducting several post-match interviews where he repeatedly asked the “boys” how “thirsty” they were for a celebratory alcohol binge. His response was to Tweet:

“Do gooders get stuffed. Straya (Australia) is the best place in the world, not politically correct, keep it real. Aussies celebrate properly ! #thirsty”

He repeated the “get stuffed” line to critics of his charity upon exiting I’m A Celebrity, in which he also labelled Waugh “the most selfish cricketer I’ve played with”.

“The more PC the world gets, the more he stands out,” says Robert Craddock, Australia’s most senior cricket journalist. “While everyone else is minding their Ps and Qs, he’s as straight as they come and says what he thinks.

“That makes him a very popular commentator, and it also generates part of the fascination with him.”

Warne, who’s often likened his life to a soap opera, and who was in fact the subject of a stage show called Shane Warne: The Musical, said in a recent interview that he had “always been me”.

“I don’t think there’s been many sportsmen on the planet, really, that have been through some of the stuff that I’ve been through, both from a personal thing, the ups, the highs and the lows,” he told Sydney’s Sunday Telegraph

“Whether you like me or don’t like me, people always have an opinion about me, that’s just the way it is.”

Controversies aside, Warne was probably the most talented bowler international cricket has known in its 139 years – and possibly the most valuable single contributor to any side in history.

“He’s also still big because it’s really coming clear now as the years pass that he was an absolute one-off,” Craddock says.

“Australia’s had 12 spinners since Warne, but none of them has come near him for ability, charisma, or his appetite for derring do, and his penchant for controversy.”

Australia quick Peter Siddle believes Pakistan’s Test squad is better equipped than ever to handle a tour of Australia ahead of their three-match series Down Under this summer.

Siddle identified the depth of the Pakistanis’ pace attack alongside brilliant leg-spinner Yasir Shah as key to their rise to number one in the Test rankings.

“Pakistan have surprised us over the last 12 months or so, they’ve started playing some consistent cricket,” Siddle told cricket.com.au’s The Unplayable Podcast.

“They’ve got some star players but they’ve been a lot more consistent with the sides they’re putting out there – they’re not chopping and changing and I think that’s where they’ve missed out in the past.

“At the moment it looks like they’ve got a pretty settle group of 13, 14 players that they go with. With a couple of injuries to bowlers, they’ve had bowlers come in and perform well, so that’s exciting for them.

“I think their squad will be suited to Australian conditions, probably more so than in the past.

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“They’ve got explosive players who can take the game away from you, and they’ve got a good assortment of quicks at the moment.

“They’ve actually got some fast bowlers that will be able to make it work on the wickets out here, and put us under a bit of pressure, so that’s a big challenge for us.”

Chief protagonists in that pace attack are likely to be left-arm quicks Wahab Riaz – who tormented the likes of Michael Clarke and Shane Watson with a stunning spell in Adelaide during the 2015 World Cup – and Mohammad Amir, who took eight wickets in the two Tests he played in Australia in 2009-10

Amir is the only member of coach Mickey Arthur’s fast-bowling group that played Tests in England to have played the five-day game in Australia, a country in which Pakistan have won just four of the 32 Tests they’ve contested.

However the first Test in Brisbane – a day-night affair with the pink ball – could help the Pakistani quicks find their feet in conditions more conducive to swing.

“I think people probably didn’t think that much about Pakistan coming out here this summer, but you look at their performances in England on wickets, not quite the same as here, but similar, and they’ve played well,” Siddle said of the 2-2 drawn series that culminated in Pakistan rising to No.1 in the world.

“So with South Africa for three Tests, and Pakistan for three Tests, it’s a big summer for us and one where we have to play some good cricket to get back that number one mantle.”

The Victorian quick, who has returned to bowling off a short run after a lengthy injury lay-off and is again likely to feature in Australia’s six-Test summer, was also conscious of the threat posed by Yasir, as well as Pakistan’s experienced middle order.

“They’ve got a class spinner, Yasir Shah, he’s unbelievable,” Siddle added. “He’s got a great record and he’s approaching 100 wickets at the quickest rate.

“The great Shane Warne has worked with him a little bit and has talked up how good he is.

“Then you’ve got the old heads, Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan just hold that middle-order together.”

Australia’s three-Test series against Pakistan begins on December 15 in Brisbane, and is followed by the traditional MCG Boxing Day and SCG New Year’s (January 3) clashes.

Tendulkar’s decision to put the opposition in to bat backfired as game’s heavyweights Kumar Sangakkara (70 off 30), Jacques Kallis (45 off 23) and Ricky Ponting (41 off 16) tore apart the equally celebrated Warriors’ bowling attack to smash 262 for five in 20 overs.

The likes of Tendulkar (33 off 20), Virender Sehwag (16 off 8), Shaun Pollock (55 off 22) Brian Lara (19 off 21) and Sourav Ganguly (12 off 12) enthralled a sizable crowd with their brief knocks at Minute Maid Park.

The ‘legends’ now travel to Los Angeles for the final game of the series on Saturday. The opening match, won by Warne’s men convincingly, was played in New York on November 7.

Though the match’s outcome was not that significant considering the games are a mere exhibition, the famed former cricketers from both teams displayed fierce competitive spirit.

The competitive zeal was evident when the dream opening pair of Tendulkar and Sehwag walked into the middle. What made the contest more mouthwatering was Wasim Akram opening the bowling for Warriors and swinging the ball in from the word go.

It was now Tendulkar’s turn to use the long handle. The master blaster hammered three fours and couple of sixes before his old foe Saqlain Mushtaq found his stumps with a fast off spinner.

Ganguly, playing his first game of the series, was expectedly rusty to start with but managed a four and a big hit in his run a ball innings.

Warne too appreciated the crowd response.

“The way we have been treated has been fantastic.

Sangakkara, who was the Man of the Match for his blazing knock, said: “It was a lot of fun, thank you Houston for the hospitality. Lot of credit to Sachin and Warney, they are pioneers on the field and they are breaking new round off the field. All outstanding players, legends of the game, the crowd participation has been unbelievable. Players have given their all on the field. “Participation of kids is vital for the growth of the game but for us, it has been humbling. Hopefully the game catches on in the US,” Sangakkara said. PTI

Warne’s Warriors: 262 for 5 (MP Vaughan 30, ML Hayden 32, JH Kallis 45, KC Sangakkara 70, RT Ponting 41, A Symonds 19 n.o., JN Rhodes 18 n.o., L Klusener 2 for 45)

Sachin’s Blasters: 205 for 8 (SR Tendulkar 33, L Klusener 21, SM Pollock 55, GP Swann 22 n.o., A Symonds 4 for 70)