Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland believes Shane Warne's departure from the Australian Test team will leave a hole which may never be filled.
Speaking after Warne announced his retirement at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Thursday afternoon, Sutherland admitted Warne was irreplaceable, and his loss would be felt by the team.
"You will never, ever be able to replace Shane Warne and the contribution that he's made to Australian cricket," he said. "Shane Warne is irreplaceable. There was a generation of Australians who were privileged to have seen Don Bradman play and we are the generation of Australians who were privileged to see Shane Warne play."
Cricket Australia has fully supported Warne's decision to retire, with Sutherland saying he was in no position to tell the greatest Test wicket-taker of all time that he should play on.
"I didn't try and change his mind, I didn't think it was my place to especially given the conversation and the understanding that he had led me to through the thought process that he had," he said.
Sutherland admitted the retirement of Warne was a sign of the changing of the guard of Australian cricket, but that he didn't believe it would prompt several other of the older members of the team to consider retiring.
"Damien Martyn retired two weeks ago, Shane Warne's retired today, from that perspective there are a couple of senior players who have been integral players of the past decade. There's no doubt that over the next year or so there is going to be significant changes. It will be up to those individuals to determine when the time says for them, assuming their form stays the same," he said.
"At the same time there's an opportunity for youth and great challenge for young, talented cricketers and coaches around the country that we bring players through that can help the Australian cricket team maintain itself as the best in the world."
And Sutherland believes Warne could play an integral role in the development of the next generation of Australian cricketers.
"He's never been selfish about sharing with young, talented cricketers whether they come from Australia, or another country," he said. "He's always been wanting the game to improve and he's always been willing to share and talk about his art."
