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Thursday, 10 February, 2005, 08:40 GMT

Spin rivals help tsunami effort

Warne (right) and Muralitharan Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan put their differences aside on Thursday for Sri Lanka's tsunami relief effort.

After a trip to the disaster-hit town of Galle, the spin rivals spent more than two hours offering tips to hundreds of schoolboys in Colombo.

"The devastation that I saw at Galle has touched me," said Australian Warne, Test cricket's leading wicket-taker.

"It is a different experience to actually witness the destruction than to see it on television."

"It was one of the most picturesque cricket grounds and it's heartbreaking to see it like this"
Warne on Galle

Warne made history in Galle last March by becoming the first bowler to take 500 Test wickets.

It was an unforgettable moment for Warne, who was playing his first Test after serving a 12-month ban for failing a drug test.

"It was my comeback Test and I got my 500th Test wicket here. It was a special moment for me," Warne said after visiting the ground, devastated by the waves that claimed almost 31,000 lives.

"It was one of the most picturesque cricket grounds and it's heartbreaking to see it like this." said

Warne has so far taken 566 wickets in 120 Tests but Muralitharan is breathing down his neck, with 532 victims in 91 matches.

Currently recovering from a shoulder injury he is playing a significant role in distributing aid to survivors as an ambassador for the UN World Food Programme.

"When the disaster struck, he [Warne] asked me how he could help. I just told him that his being here will help," said Muralitharan.



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Related to this story:

Cricket coach moves on after tsunami (21 Jan 05 |  Women's cricket )
Calcutta tsunami fixture put back (27 Jan 05 |  Cricket )
World XI triumph in tsunami match (10 Jan 05 |  Cricket )
Galle 'out of action for a year' (12 Jan 05 |  Sri Lanka )

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