He is regarded as the greatest leg spinner of all time and currently holds the record for the most wickets taken by any bowler.

Warne is an outstanding talent, something recognised at all levels of sport across the globe.

That fact will never be denied, regardless of how his sporting career ends in the coming months and years.

But his personal life has become an embarrassment, if not for himself, then surely for his family and certainly for his many fans around the world.

Perhaps the only surprise about his separation from his wife is that it has taken so long to occur.

Scandal has followed him throughout his career.

Much of it has been malicious gossip and the work of attention-seeking people trying to feed off the reputation of such a high-profile person.

But there has been enough depth to some of the allegations to leave people frustrated at the apparent activities of a person who has achieved so much in his professional sporting life.

If he needs to look anywhere for an example of what he might have achieved by carrying success and responsibility in his sport through to his personal life, he need look no further than the Australian

captain Ricky Ponting.

In his early days, Ponting had his own share of skirmishes with cricket officialdom, not to mention people in Sydney nightclubs.

He quickly changed his approach, lifting his cricketing career to exceptional heights both on and off the field.

He has become a strong role model for young cricketers on how to handle themselves both in success and defeat.

Replacing Steve Waugh as captain would have been a difficult challenge, but he met it with authority and certainty and placed his own stamp on what has sometimes been described as the most important

job in Australian sport.

There may have been a time when Warne might have coveted the role. He well and truly blew his chances years ago.

It can only be hoped that the separation between he and his wife is beneficial for both and, most importantly, their children do not suffer unduly.

Let's also hope that the separation does not adversely affect his cricketing skill during the forthcoming Ashes series.

After all, the extent of that skill is the one thing about the troubled Shane Warne that cannot be denied.