MCG to honour Warne with a statue

Warne, whose last Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground was in 2006, will be the latest to be honoured with a statue outside the venue, Sydney Morning Herald reported.

There are already 10 statues erected around the ground, honouring famous figures such as Sir Donald Bradman, Ron Barassi and Betty Cuthbert.

The MCC have decided they will now start an avenue of legends, running along the path from their members' entrance to Wellington Pde.

Warne's statue is expected to be unveiled near the end of next year.

The 41-year-old Melbourne native enjoyed some of the greatest moments of his cricketing career at the MCG, including his only Test hat-trick.

"Shane's playing record is unparalleled and he will sit comfortably alongside the 10 sporting greats already outside the MCG," said MCC president David Meiklejohn.

The avenue of legends project will involve a minimum of one statue per year for the next five years.

Warne ended his career with 708 wickets in Test matches and 293 in One-day Internationals. He retired from international cricket in January 2007 after Australia's 5-0 Ashes series victory over England.