Cricket World Cup 2015: Darren Lehmann denies Michael Clarke is being set up to fail

SHANE Warne is the buzz fly in Australian cricket that cannot be swatted. Brilliant, but a maverick who won’t be tamed.

Cricket Australia XI v Bangladesh XI

SHANE Warne is the buzz fly in Australian cricket that cannot be swatted.

Brilliant, but a maverick who won’t be tamed.

This time last year Warne was invited on tour by Darren Lehmann as a consultant for the Australian team in South Africa.

Twelve months on and Warne has accused Cricket Australia of attempting to “break” their captain Michael Clarke with the strict World Cup fitness deadline they imposed on him.

Lehmann is annoyed at the inference.

“That’s absolute rubbish” was the crux of Lehmann’s answer when replayed audio of Warne’s comments during a radio interview.

Of course it’s not unusual for Warne to attack Cricket Australia.

Two years ago he labelled James Sutherland, Pat Howard and those running the game “muppets”.

And still they welcomed him into the tent as a consultant in the lead up to last year’s World Twenty20.

Shane Warne and Darren Lehmann are at loggerheads over criticism of Cricket Australia.

But on this occasion, by going into bat for his close friend Michael Clarke, as he’s entitled to do, Warne has criticised the judgement and motivations of some of his other good mates.

It’s not the suits in Jolimont who are calling the shots in this instance.

The ‘Cricket Australia’ Warne has lashed — is Lehmann, Mark Waugh and Rod Marsh and the medical staff.

“I think they’ve just tried to break him (Clarke) and I suppose for him he feels like he’s trying to be broken,” Warne said in a television interview late last week.

Warne then went on to make somewhat contradictory statements by declaring Clarke’s deadline should have been more relaxed, yet it in the same breath, that it was wrong to leave him out of Australia’s World Cup opener against England.

Although a little confusing, it was strong stuff, and it must be said Warne isn’t the only one who shares the opinion that selectors set Clarke up to fail.

Lehmann vehemently denies those accusations, and it’s hard to know whether he’s taking his former teammate’s comments as an insult or ‘Warnie being Warnie’.

“We didn’t talk about it mate,” Lehmann said when asked on 3AW.

“Warnie’s entitled to his opinion but we know that was absolute rubbish.

“That’s his opinion.

“I can’t say anything against the great man, it’s just the way he wants to say things (and) that’s fine.”

Warne’s standing among the all-time greats of the game is unquestioned, and the reason why — after the humiliating series defeat against Pakistan in the UAE — Cricket Australia floated a potential SOS to Warne to come on as a spin consultant for the Ashes.

That possibility is still on the table as far as CA are concerned.

However, CA and Lehmann would know more than ever now that when you hire Warne, you hire him on his terms.

On that South Africa tour, television cameras captured Warne dozing off during a day’s play and it was Sri Lankan great Muttiah Muralitharan and not Warne who was called in for the tour of the UAE.

Shane Warne and Michael Clarke are firm friends.

During the Test series, Lehmann sought a word with Warne after the commentator labelled fast bowler Mitchell Starc as “soft.”

Although according to Warne, Lehmann agreed with his assessment that Starc’s body language needed improvement.

After all, a love of a laugh and a cigarette and a similar view on the game brought Warne and Lehmann close during their playing days.

There’s no suggestion at all they still aren’t friends.

A lot of things Warne has to say might be penetrative, but they’re often close to the money.

Starc for instance, hasn’t looked back since.

Cricket Australia would be silly to close the door on Warne, and they won’t.

However, even if poker tournament and social commitments allow him to be part of the Australian set-up again, it remains to be seen whether Australia want to put up with the buzz as well as the brilliance.