IPL 13: Rajasthan Royals welcome back Shane Warne as brand ambassador, mentor

Rajasthan Royals on Sunday named legendary cricketer Shane Warne as their brand ambassador for the second year in a rowm ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) season starting September 19 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

For the upcoming edition, Warne will also add the role of team mentor to his duties for the season, a statement said.

Warne's trip to UAE will see him working with Royals' management team to strengthen their international fanbase and wow the Royals' existing and potential sponsors with his exceptional cricketing knowledge and foresight.

The former Australia great will also be campaigning for the ethos of Royals' philanthropic initiatives focussed towards a woman-empowered culture with the Royal Rajasthan Foundation, the CSR arm of the franchise.

As a team mentor, Warne will work alongside head coach Andrew McDonald. He has been teammates with McDonald from 2003-07 for Victoria. He will also join up with Zubin Bharucha, Head of Cricket at Rajasthan Royals, who was with Warne during the inaugural season and together won the tournament back in 2008.

"On my dual role, it's always a great feeling to be back with Royals, my team, my family," Warne said.

"It's exciting to be working across all elements of this franchise that I love. We have worked towards our vision of becoming a global team that fans around the world love and follow. This season I am looking forward to working as a Team Mentor and joining up with an excellent backroom staff in Zubin Bharucha and Andrew McDonald.

"Hopefully, we can have a successful season and achieve big things in the coming months," he added.