Joe Root has led English tributes to Shane Warne, as the nation the great Aussie loved to beat remembered their old nemesis with real sadness and affection.

He was the showman English cricket loved to berate, but Joe Root's fond tribute demonstrates how much the old enemy really adored Shane Warne.

The news of the great Australian's death on Friday left England shell-shocked, dominating the sporting headlines in a country where, like so many of his generation, England captain Root grew up being mesmerised by a unique talent.

Speaking from the West Indies where he's leading England on tour, Root could have been speaking for the rest of the English game when he said the news had left all the players stunned.

"It's hit everyone quite hard if I'm being brutally honest," he said.

"As a kid growing up he was a massive idol of mine and someone you wanted to emulate.

"The way he could win a game on his own, his skill levels were incredible. I'd have been 14 when the 2005 Ashes was on, and in many ways that series was a massive influence on my career."

That was one of the great series in cricket history which England won. Yet Warne's magnificent efforts in defeat won him new-found admiration from the home fans, with whom he'd always loved the spiky banter.

After losing the series 2-1 at the Oval, Warne was given the ultimate and wholly unexpected honour of being serenaded with, "Wish you were English, we only wish you were English!" to the astonishment of his teammates.

It was very different to the grief home fans gave him after Warne swayed around with a ludicrous dance brandishing a stump on the Trent Bridge balcony after Australia had secured the 1997 Ashes.

Even then, somehow, he was easy to forgive.

"He was always a joy to be around, he gave so much energy to the sport," said Root.

Andrew Strauss was one of those who knew how it felt to be embarrassed by Warne's brilliance, having been bamboozled and bowled by him in that 2005 series in a similar manner to the way Mike Gatting fell to the 'ball of the century' 12 years earlier.

"He literally was the greatest showman," Strauss told BBC Five Live.

"There were other great cricketers, who when you look at their record would potentially equal Shane's or maybe even better them - but there was no greater star in cricket than Shane Warne.

"It is just so hard to believe he is not with us anymore. He was one of those characters who had so much vibrancy and energy about him, you never thought his time was anywhere near up."

Gatting, victim of that ball at Old Trafford that catapulted Warne to stardom and the first of his 195 Ashes scalps, couldn't believe the news either.

"He is the number one ever," said Gatting.

"He had all the things a cricketer needed, a lot of self-confidence, a lot of ability, the discipline, passion and desire.

"But above all he had time to enjoy it. He had great fun playing cricket and resonated with a lot of youngsters. The inspirational leg-spin he bowled inspired many, many guys to take up leg-spin bowling."

Michael Vaughan, captain of the victorious 2005 England team, offered the thought: "One thing is for sure.

"Heaven will be a lively place now the King has arrived."

Former England captain Michael Atherton hailed Warne as one of the all-time greats.

Speaking to Sky Sports News, Atherton said: "Up until that first Ashes Test at Old Trafford in 1993 we had not seen much of him.

"He came under the radar, but not after he bowled Mike Gatting and then for the next 15 years he was the superstar of the game.

"He is the greatest leg spinner the game has seen. You are talking about a cricketer who stands tall with (Don) Bradman and (Garfield) Sobers and the absolute giants of the game.

"What a dreadful week for Australian cricket losing two giants like Rod Marsh and Shane Warne."