IPL: Shane Warne marks royal return as Rajasthan's mentor

Shane Warne returned to his former IPL team, not as a bowler, obviously but as a mentor. He was probably the reason when Rajasthan won the IPL trophy in 2008.

Recently, he had revealed that he will return to the upcoming edition of IPL.

The last time he played for Rajasthan Royals was 2011. Now, he set to return as the team's mentor.

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Rajasthan Royals, who will be playing the IPL this season after serving a two-year ban, announced the 'homecoming' of the 48-year-old.

In a recent tweet, he said, "Very excited to be joining the @rajasthanroyals in this years #IPL as team mentor!"

"I am very happy and excited to be back with the Rajasthan Royals who I believe hold a very special place in my cricketing journey.

I am overwhelmed by the love and affection showered on me by the franchise and the fans," said Warne.

"We have a strong, young and energetic bunch of boys and I am looking forward to work with them," he added.

Warne will be joined by another Royals old hand in former Mumbai batsman Zubin Bharucha as Head of Cricket.

Royals co-owner Manoj Badale was thrilled at Warne's return.

"He is a legend of the game and what he has achieved in Rajasthan Royals is unmatchable," said Badale.

"Bringing back Shane Warne is also a way of giving back to our fans who have stood by us in trying times. As we are looking to build a strong team that can be in contention for the title, we believe Warne is the right person to mentor the Rajasthan Royals," he added.

Rajasthan Royals welcomed him and shared a video of his beautiful journey.

Royals spent big in the recent IPL auction, buying troubled England all-rounder Ben Stokes for a whopping Rs 12.5 crore and India pacer Jaydev Unadkat for Rs 11.5 crore.

Australian captain Steve Smith and India batsman Ajinkya Rahane are the other big names in the team.