'He was forced to take them': Shane Warne's son says COVID vaccines caused legend's death

SYDNEY: Four years after Shane Warne's death left the cricketing world in shock, his son Jackson has asserted that the spin legend's demise was probably caused by the "three or four" COVID vaccines that he was "forced to take for work."

Speaking on '2 Worlds Collide podcast', Jackson, however, also acknowledged that his father underlying health issues. Warne was 52 when he died in Thailand in 2022 after suffering a heart attack.

"I definitely think that it (COVID vaccine) was involved. I don't even think saying that is controversial anymore. Even if dad had underlying health issues, I think this brought it out right to the surface and that's one thing that I've always struggled with," Jackson said.

"My first impression, as soon as I hung up the phone (after receiving the news of Warne's death), I instantly blamed the government. I instantly blamed COVID and the vaccine."

Jackson said he barely managed to stop himself from vocalising his exact thoughts at the memorial service.

"It was probably smart I didn't, I would be in a very different position if I did. But that was how I felt," Jackson said.

"Yes, a lot of people were dying of heart attacks before. But dad was okay, I think he might have got three or four (vaccine doses), he didn't want to get them, he was forced to get them for work. He was forced to get them like everybody else," he asserted.

"...I try not to think about it too much because all that does is fester into anger. That anger is not good for anybody," he added.

Giving an insight into the lifestyle of his father, who was known to be indulgent, Jackson said it was relatively healthy despite the smoking and drinking.

"Dad, at the time, was healthy, he was happy. He looked the best he had in a while. Yes, he smoked and drank, but so many more people in their 80s and 90s still smoke and drink a lot more than dad," he said.

Warne had contracted COVID a few months before his death during his 2021 coaching stint with The Hundred event in England.

However, he was not known to have any major ailment at the time of his stunning demise.