'This is poor and shameful': Gavaskar faces backlash for 'pretty ordinary record, not greatest spinner' comment on Warne

Warne, aged 52, on Friday died of a suspected heart attack in Thailand.

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar's comment on Australia cricket legend Shane Warne did not go down well with fans on Twitter who lashed out at the batting maestro for commenting on his record against India on the day of his death. Warne, aged 52, on Friday died of a suspected heart attack in Thailand.

Shane Warne; Sunil Gavaskar

While expressing his shock at the demise of the former Aussie cricketer, Gavaskar was asked to compare Warne and rate him among the greatest spinners to have embraced the sport, however he refused to put his name on that list and instead opined that Indian spinners and Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan had better record than Warne.

“No, I wouldn’t say that no. For me the Indian spinners and Muttiah Muralitharan were better than Shane Warne," he told India Today.

“Look at Shane Warne’s record against India. It was pretty ordinary. In India, he got five wickets only once in Nagpur, and that too because Zaheer Khan swung wildly against him to give him a fifer. Because he did not have much success against Indian players who were very good players of spin, I don’t think I would call him the greatest. Muttiah Muralitharan with a greater success he had against India, I would rank him over Warne in my book,” added Gavaskar.

Here's how Twitter reacted to Gavaskar's comment...

Warne was found unresponsive in his villa hotel in Koh Samui and despite the frantic attempts by his four friends to revive him, they failed and was eventually pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. Plans were being made to return his body to his hometown of Melbourne in Australia, where his family has been offered a state funeral.

Hundreds of fans offered flowers at Warne's statue outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground after Australia woke up to the shocking news.