‘Warnie was going to pay Roy from his own wage,’ Gilchrist on Warne’s gesture to Symonds

The cricket world is still coming to terms with the fact that the former Australian cricketer, Andrew Symonds, is no more, having lost his life in a car accident. It was on Sunday (May 15) morning when the news of the sudden demise of the Queenslander broke out to the world. Since then, tributes have been flowing for the former all-rounder from everywhere around the world.

Symonds' longtime teammate Adam Gilchrist recently shared a tale of Shane Warne’s amazing gesture for Symonds, which the latter said to him following Warne's farewell and “could not believe it”. Warne was appointed head coach of the franchise London Spirit for the Hundred competition in England and wanted to have Andrew Symonds and former Victorian wicketkeeper Darren Berry in the coaching staff of the franchise.

“I spent the night with Roy at Warnie’s big farewell and the next morning with Roy, which was typically the case. He was so upset at the loss of Warnie. Everyone was stunned. But a little thing that Roy was telling me just last week that Warnie had been speaking about getting him over to be an assistant coach at the London Spirit in The Hundred competition over there in England,” Gilchrist told the Triple M Rush Hour with JB and Billy.

The secret that Symonds didn’t know until a few weeks back was that Warne had planned to pay the Queenslander from his own wage, which he was going to get for the role of head coach in the London based franchise.

“And it was only a couple of weeks ago that Roy found out there was no budget put aside for him. There was nothing documented in London Spirit’s set-up. Warnie was doing that on his own accord and was going to pay Roy the wage that he was going to get for being over there, and Roy couldn’t believe that,” the former Australian added. 

All these stories following the death of the former Australian all-rounder suggest that being such an extraordinary cricketer, how loyal and genuine Symonds was as a bloke. Friendship and loyalty were everything to him. 

“That sense of friendship and mateship was everything that Roy built his whole life around, of trust and loyalty. He just cared for everyone else. Geez, he made you laugh. He was just an absolute crackerjack, naturally funny bloke where he didn’t even know he was doing it half the time.”

“He was loyal to a fault, he really was.”