8216;Better to befriend Sachin8217;

8220;On the other hand, with Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara, it was better to be friends and make them smile rather than wind them up,8221; he wrote in his column for The Times. Warne touched upon the issue in the wake of the racism row involving Harbhajan Singh and Andrew Symonds. 8220;The sledging issue has become topical again after the Harbhajan Singh appeal8212; even being described as un-Australian by Michael Jeffery, the Governor-General,8221;Warne said.

Meanwhile, the IPL8217;s star attraction Shane Warne has voiced his support for the rival Indian Cricket League, saying it was 8220;ridiculous8221; and 8220;short-sighted8221; to ban players like Shane Bond for associating with the Essel Group-backed venture. 8220;I think of the IPL and ICL together in promoting and expanding the game. With that in mind, it is ridiculous that Shane Bond should be banned for taking part in the ICL,8221; Warne said.