What’s really behind Shane Warne’s announcement that he’s relocating to England?

The Weekend Australian’s
Peter Lalor had an interesting piece on the carefully managed
rehabilitation of Warne’s image over the last 12 months with help from
some “high-powered friends”. It’s a campaign which is almost complete,
writes Lalor. The leg-spinner’s legendary status is now assured but he
and his friends have also been working hard to ensure “we all know that
Shane is a good bloke”.

Warne is friends with the Packers, and
the Nine Network has played a key role in rebuilding the image of the
cricketer who remains a key asset to the network that owns cricket in
Australia, says media strategist Anthony McClellan. Warne is currently
renegotiating deals with Nine and two News Corp papers, the Herald Sun and the UK’s Times.

“He’s
in a rebuilding phase at the moment,” says his brother Jason. “It’s all
about building his life after cricket at the moment.”