By Martin Gough

Warne returned to one-day cricket in last week's tsunami match

Australia's winning ways have continued unabated since Shane Warne retired from one-day cricket, but that has not halted calls for him to make a comeback.

The leg-spinner, Test cricket's leading wicket-taker, returned to the one-day arena to play for a World XI in the recent Tsunami Appeal match in his native Melbourne.

"I definitely enjoyed it," he said afterwards. "At this stage I'm still retired but I do enjoy playing it and who knows, down the track, you never know."

His Aussie team-mates have all offered opinions but Warne, now 35, has a lot to mull over as he considers his future.

Warne had planned to finish his one-day career, in which he made 193 appearances for Australia, after the 2003 World Cup.

But Australia were forced to defend their crown without their leading spinner after he tested positive for a banned substance.

He performed well at the MCG last week without starring, taking 2-27 in seven overs.

But it would fit with Warne's image for him to finish his career by starring in a big game for Australia.

And a date in Barbados for the World Cup final in April 2007 may be too much for him to pass up.

Warne considered retirement as long ago as 1999 after a long struggle with wrist and shoulder injuries.

WARNE'S RECORD Tests overall: 120 caps, 566 wkts at 25.62, best 8/71 Tests since one-day retirement: 13 caps, 75 wkts at 25.06, best 6/125 ODIs overall: 194 caps, 293 wkts at 25.73, best 5-33

The last three years, though, have seen him revitalised, and his decision to step down was motivated by a desire to stay at the top in Test cricket for as long as possible.

Tim Tremlett is director of cricket at Hampshire, where Warne plays his county cricket.

"Whenever I have spoken to him he has said it's easier not to play one-day cricket because it takes a lot out of him," he told BBC Sport.

"In the long term it will protect his Test career."

After an enforced year off because of that positive drugs test, Warne burst back onto the Test scene, taking 26 wickets in a three-match series in Sri Lanka.

With an Ashes clash coming up next July, and tours by West Indies and South Africa to Australia afterwards, he may be unwilling to lose recovery time between Test series.

While Warne continues to twirl at Test level, pretenders to his throne have had a chance in the one-day arena.

Hogg wraps up Aussie win

Left-arm wrist-spinner Brad Hogg took a career-best 5-32 against West Indies in Melbourne on Friday, while Warne was in Perth with the Victoria squad, considering his future.

Behind him, off-spinner Nathan Hauritz has yet to make his mark in eight one-day appearances and leggie Cameron White has been included recently in Australian touring parties.

More time on the playing field for Warne might make Australia's planning for the future more difficult, although their infrastructure behind the Test side is good.

Warne heads to New Zealand later this month to captain a World XI in a hastily-arranged one-day series.

Ultimately his future career choice may revolve around whether he has a good chance of playing in the next World Cup, when he will be 37.

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Australia's selectors are well-known for their off-the-record advice to players and may let him know how good his chances are.

Captain Ricky Ponting said this week: "If I was a betting man, it would probably be a toss of the coin thing at the moment."

Hampshire hope Warne will continue his career with them after his international career comes to a close.

And they are watching the situation with interest as his involvement in the one-day series that precedes the Ashes could mean the county lose their star for an extra month.

Said Tremlett: "He has got plenty of cricket left in him.

"He could play in the World Cup in 2007 but he needn't return to one-day cricket immediately."

Australia awaits Warne's decision with eager anticipation.