BRETT LEE yesterday displayed blind faith in his mentor Dennis Lillee by hatching a new short run-up and a novel journey back to top-flight cricket.
Lee bowled pain-free in his left ankle for the first time in a decade as he worked under the gaze of Lillee at a session in Brisbane.
The NSW quick is expected to announce today he will join the Australian Cricket Academy for two matches early next month on their tour of India then fly to England for two four-day county games with Surrey.
From there, Australia are likely to choose Lee in their 14-man squad for the Champions Trophy one-day tournament in England.
They would be his first international matches since he had ankle surgery after withdrawing from Australia's tour of Sri Lanka in March.
"It almost seems unfair to be bowling without pain," Lee said. "I haven't bowled without having my ankle strapped since I was 17."
To shorten Lee's run-up, Lillee asked him to bowl a series of balls with his eyes closed in the middle of Brisbane's Allan Border Field and simply bowl when it felt right.
Remarkably, Lee delivered the ball in roughly the same spot each time. His run-up was more than four metres shorter than the one he has used since he was a teenager. His new run, which he will experiment with in coming months, is about 19.2m, compared to his usual 23.8m.
"I have never seen anyone do this and run longer than their original run-up," Lillee said. "It wasn't my idea. It came from former Australian fast bowler Laurie Mayne. But Brett looks fantastic and is as ready as I have ever seen him. He is bowling about 80 per cent."
Test selectors Trevor Hohns and Allan Border, along with Merv Hughes, watched Lee yesterday as he gained respectable pace in a promising net session.