CHENNAI, AUG. 10. He flashed a smile, drew his blond hair back, marked his run-up, viewed the timber in front, and then got down to more serious business under the blazing afternoon sun.
The man on the fast lane had himself been slowed down by injuries. Now Brett Lee is turning on the ignition key again.
"I've bowled with pain for the last five years. There is no pain now. I am truly pleased," said the 27-year-old Wollongong-born New South Welshman in an exclusive interview to The Hindu, here, on Tuesday.
He had bowled during the lunch-break in the match between the Brisbane-based Australian Cricket Academy Centre of Excellence and the MRF at the MRF-Pachaiyappa's ground, under the watchful eyes of former India paceman Javagal Srinath, and Head Coach at the MRF Pace Foundation T.A. Sekar.
Fitness worries
Then cooling off in the pavilion, taking a swig from his soft drink bottle, and wiping sweat off his brow, even as shouts of "Mr. Brett Lee, autograph please,'' rent the air, he said, " I want to find a bit of match form, find a bit of match fitness. I want to ensure that my ankle stays in shape." A persistent ankle injury had forced Lee to take a 17-week break, however, a successful surgery appears to have injected him with a dose of freshness.
Stung by fitness worries, and much wiser for the same, he is treading carefully. "I went to the backyard. The self-doubts did not creep in. I enjoy bowling fast and hopefully I can do so again."
The three sessions with pace bowling legend Dennis Lillee in Perth also helped. "He worked a bit on my action. I became a lot taller through the crease. I also worked on my approach to the crease and the way I let go the ball."
He realises that with Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie and Michael Kasprovicz in the current Australian squad, a place in the starting eleven might not be guaranteed.
"It's good to fight for a place. It ensures that you do not become complacent. Hopefully my one-day record will speak for itself. I am very proud of it," says the man with 139 victims in 37 Tests (ave 31.66) and 151 scalps in 84 ODIs (strike rate 28.4).
Tough Indians
He maintains India will be the biggest threat to Australia in the Holland tri-series. "We always find it very tough to play against India. They have got the best top six [batsmen] in world cricket. Pakistan can also be a tough opponent."
The Australian lavishes praise on his great Pakistani fast bowling `rival and mate' Shoaib Akhtar — "the way he runs in, it's a great sight" — and talks about how Aussie captain Ricky Ponting is conscious of the Steve Waugh legacy.
Speed does thrill and Lee wants to sizzle again, not fizzle out, with those swinging toe-crushers and mean `perfume balls.'
- S. DINAKAR