Shane Warne was an illusionist first and leg-spinner second, says Greg Chappell

Greg Chappell on Monday paid glowing tributes to Shane Warne, describing the spin legend as an illusionist first and then a spinner, who mesmerized the world with his craft and took it to an altogether different level. Warne died at the age of 52 due to a suspected heart attack at the Koh Samui island in Thailand on Friday, leaving the world stunned and shell-shocked. "When I think of Shane Warne, I think of the words of American naturalist, poet and writer Henry David Thoreau: 'It's not what you look at, it is what you see.' Shane Warne was an illusionist first and a great leg-spin bowler second," Chappell wrote in his column for 'Sydney Morning Herald'.

"I was fortunate to get to know Shane well in his post-cricket days by playing numerous games of golf with him at one of his favourite courses, Cathedral Lodge and Golf Club in Thornton, Victoria. You get to know someone pretty well when you spend four hours with them on the golf course and then as many again over post-round replays." Chappell said Warne was just more than a great leg-spinner as he inspired a generation of cricketers to take up his craft. "Shane was more than just a leg spinner.

He was an entertainer with enormous charisma who attracted attention wherever he went. His success generated millions of viewers to the game and brought the art of leg spin to life. "It also spawned a new generation of leg spinners who tried to walk up to the crease and let it rip! What they didn't have was Shane's brute strength and native cunning, so very few have reached great heights," he said.

Chappell, a former India coach, feels Warne's public perception was "coloured" and misunderstood. "What you got with Shane wasn't necessarily what you saw. You only got what he let