Warne to enter Oz Cricket Hall of Fame, Clarke favourite for Border medal

Australia's legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne is set to be inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame at Monday's Allan Border Medal (ABM) function while current captain Michael Clarke is tipped to receive his third ABM at the same event.

Warne (708 wickets), who held the record for maximum wickets before Sri Lankan Muttiah Murlitharan surpassed him, retired from Test cricket in January 2007. He played Twenty20 cricket in the lucrative Indian Premier League for four seasons.

Hall of Fame chairman David Crow praised Warne's contribution to cricket.

"He revived legspin, combining accuracy with variety and enormous turn, even on unhelpful pitches," Crow said in a statement released by Cricket Australia Sunday.

"It was the timing of his performances in addition to his sheer weight of wickets that further underlined his legendary status." 

Clarke too is set to be felicitated with another ABM, to cap a very successful year as Test captain. He previously won the medal in 2005 and 2009.

Clarke became the captain of the national squad in August 2011, replacing Ricky Ponting. In his previous 11 Tests he has scored 1.167 runs at an average of 68.65, which includes an unbeaten 329 against India in the Sydney Test this year.

Other awards to be presented include young cricketer of the year, state player of the year and women's international cricketer of the year which has been renamed the Belinda Clark Award and is likely to feature Alex Blackwell and Sarah Coyte among the leading contenders.