Durban: Team India captain Rahul Dravid, who has always had enormous respect for Shane Warne, has said that “cricket will be poorer” with his decision to quit at the end of the ongoing Ashes.

“Warne has been a huge performer and is going to be missed... Cricket will be poorer... As for his legacy, it’s the joy and enjoyment he brought to the game,” Dravid told The Telegraph after an indoor session at Kingsmead.

Asked if he believed in the philosophy of signing-out when at the very top, Dravid replied, grinning: “I don’t believe in any philosophy...”

Earlier on Thursday, senior pro Anil Kumble spoke to the Media about Warne. Here goes:

“There’s going to be a void not just in Australian but world cricket... When Fred Trueman got 300 Test wickets, nobody thought he would be surpassed... Today, Warney is one away from 700... He has definitely set a new benchmark, but Murali (Muttiah Muralidharan) will change the entire scene very soon...

“People took to leg-spin because they wanted to bowl like him... In fact, the youngsters bowling to us at nets in South Africa have all been wanting to bowl like him... Thanks to Warney, people began looking up to spin bowling...

“I’m going to miss watching him bowl in person and on the TV... I wish I had his ability to spin the ball... As friends, we shared experiences... Very few from the opposition will tell you how they bowl, but Warney would and it speaks for him as a person... Speaks about the great quality of the man...

“I wouldn’t say there was more competition when we played each other... He would try and get the most wickets for Australia, I would try and get the most for India... That was it...

“I’d thought he would return to ODIs and have one last crack at the World Cup (he missed the last because of a ban), but his goal had been to help regain the Ashes... He deserves to go out when at the top... I’m sure the Australians would like to win the last Test (Sydney), too, in order to give Warney a fitting farewell...”

Before that, though, should come Warne’s 700th wicket — on home turf, the MCG.