I will acknowledge Warne's poor record vs India. Stats don't lie in cricket we will find, but I will say this.
I learnt a valuable lesson back in 1996 when writing off a champion when all seems stacked against him or her, I look to the 1500m final where Kieren Perkins from lane 8 did what he was not supposed to do...win. Here we were talking about the best swimmer Australia had seen at the time, and MOST were giving him next to no chance. What happened is now history, that day is one of the great sporting memories I have in my 24 years. Perkins won gold.
Other examples of where a champion athlete has done what he was not supposed to do:
* Michael Jordan at 40+ y.o. coming back to the NBA for the Washington Wizards and being competitive. He wasn't the MJ in his prime, but he was MJ enough to be as good any bar a handful in the NBA.
* Mark Taylor breaking the slump that would of saw off many Test cricketers (he was captain) and then going on to equal the Don with 334* vs Pakistan.
* Shane Warne himself after a 12mth layoff coming back to Test cricket mesmerising the hapless Sri Lankans picking up 10for in his first test back.
What I am getting at is this.
Shane Warne's track record suggests he is going to struggle against the best players of spin in world cricket. India remain the final frontier for Shane Warne and with his career nearing the end, I see Shane Warne re-writing this last chapter and playing the lead role bowling wise in this series.
Yes, Warne has been in and out of injury when tackling the Indians, but when a player takes the field in any sport, IMO, he leaves excuses in the dressing shed.
I am happy for guys like pogo to write off Warne, we are only talking about the greatest spinner of all time and perhaps the best bowler of all time as well...I will put my money with Warne despite the mediocre results in times gone by.
Can't wait for the series.