The dazzling blond hair, the glittering ear-studs, the prodigious leg-breaks that changed cricket for ever: Shane Warne has always attracted attention whenever he has appeared on a cricket field. To judge by his recent series in The Times, in which he selected the 50 greatest cricketers of his generation, he will continue to attract attention long into his retirement.

From all around the world, reaction has poured into the TimesOnline Inbox debating whether, with each of his 50 selections, Warne has delivered a ripper or a wrong ’un.

There was plenty of approval, from India in particular, for Warne’s choice of Sachin Tendulkar as his No1. “It’s good to see Sachin placed on top by Warne, it’s perfect!” wrote Pradeep from Madras. But there was also support and consolation for Brian Lara, who finished a short head behind Tendulkar in second place. “When he gets his mind right, Lara is the greatest ever batsman,” suggested Pavan Kumar in Toronto.

Much of the reaction offered passionate support or opposition to the great leg-spinner’s selections, but when some of the responses became somewhat emotional, others were on hand to calm the mood and explain Warne’s motives. “It seems that Warnie’s list is based not just on players’ ability but on less tangible qualities like mental toughness, style, dedication to the game and who he just enjoyed playing with and against in his career,” said Alfie in Singapore.

Every time a new Ashes contest loomed, Warne used to claim that he was ready to surprise the Poms with a new ball that he had been working in the nets. Well, there was certainly no shortage of surprises in his top 50. Early in the series, Samarth from Delhi guessed that Steve Waugh would be Warne’s No1. In fact, Waugh’s ranking at No26 was probably his most controversial of all and was seized on by many as evidence that Waugh and Warne, erstwhile rivals for the Australia captaincy, were less than bosom buddies off the field. “Clearly Warnie’s still angry at not being made captain after Mark Taylor,” said Ned, from Malibu, US. “Steve Waugh at No26? That’s some public venom if ever I read it,” wrote Michael Wilkinson from Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

The selection of Ian Healy ahead of Adam Gilchrist also attracted plenty of comment, but Warne’s most controversial selection of all was to place Waqar Younis as low as 45, below Steve Harmison, Tim May and Merv Hughes, among others.

“It’s a shocker to see Waqar ranked so low on the list! One of the finest fast bowlers cricket has ever seen. Wake up, Mr Warne!” shouted Farhan from New York. “What nonsense, Waqar at 45? Absolutely ridiculous!” fulminated Dr Rafay Khan from London. And there were hundreds more suggesting similar sentiments.

Yet once again there were plenty of readers queuing up to support Warne. “Waqar had most of his success finishing off the tail. He was a good bowler, but not great,” said Sunny from Toronto. Shyam from Los Angeles pointed out that, on tour in Australia, Waqar took only 14 wickets in seven Tests at an average of 40. Statistics only ever tell part of a story, but is it any surprise if Warne, having played against Waqar in these Tests in Australia, did not hold the fast bowler in such high regard?

So many options, so many opinions. If Warne’s selection had been straightforward, it wouldn’t have been half as interesting, nor would it have attracted a fraction of the comments that poured in from around the world. Perhaps the final, charitable word should be left to Sunil Kumar, from Panchkula in India: “Excellent work done by Shane Warne because it is never easy to pick the world’s top 50 cricketers. Well done, Mr Warne…”

Explore Cricket

• Counties