Warne 'eager' to help Oz squad 'anytime' to help 'best pals' Clarke, Lehmann

Australian spin legend Shane Warne has expressed his eagerness to help the struggling Australian Ashes squad as a favour to his former teammates and best friends Michael Clarke and Darren Lehmann.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Warne returned to the Old Trafford pitch, 20 years after his 'Ball of the Century' to assist the tourists put the finishing touches on their Ashes rescue mission, which starts with Thursday's third Ashes Test at Old Trafford.

Answering the call of Lehmann and Clarke, Warne said he was eager to help when called on, as they are his best friends, despite his lavish lifestyle, commentary commitments, poker, and his family, adding that there will be other times when he will again come to mentor the team.

Speaking at length with spinners Nathan Lyon, Ashton Agar, as well as Clarke, Warne even rolled the arm over a few times to Clarke in the indoor nets as it was raining outside, characteristically predicting Australia could reverse a 2-0 series deficit and reclaim the Ashes.

Stating that it was nice to just get back amongst the group and see how they were going, Warne said that he had passed 'just a bit' of his advice on what he had observed so far about the current team and also gave tips on how they can improve, adding that he can help mentor the team as he has got 25 years playing experience.