Brett Lee has added fuel to speculation that the Champions Trophy in October is a low priority for Australian and English players.
Lee donned a dhoti and delighted the local media by speaking a smattering of Hindi while on a promotional stop in India this week.
Local authorities are nervous about Australia's commitment to the Champions Trophy after suggestions from Adam Gilchrist that some Australians may need to rest from the event which ends a week before the Ashes series begins.
England coach Duncan Fletcher has suggested that players such as Andrew Flintoff may also need to be given a break during the one-day series.
According to local reports Lee was less than convincing when asked if he would return for the tournament.
"I would love to play it because that's the only trophy we haven't won. But, then, I will play if I am fit enough to play at that time. Frankly, I love coming to the subcontinent," Lee said. "To us the Ashes is more important than anything else. We had the hold over it for 18 long years. We are very keen to win it back."
The fast bowler reiterated just how burnt out he felt from months of endless cricket and touring.
"Of late, we are playing a lot of cricket. We have to be careful about it. I would like to compare my body to a petrol tank," he said.
"It's been on fumes in the last few months. I am really looking forward to going back home now."
Meanwhile, Ian Chappell said that while Australia deserved to be favourite for the Champions Trophy, it had relied too much on the batting of Ricky Ponting and Gilchrist in recent matches.
"These (Indian) are their least favourite conditions to play under and the gap between them and the rest of the field is narrowing," Chappell wrote in a column for the Mid-Day newspaper in Mumbai.
"In the big games they still rely heavily on Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist's belligerent stroke play to post the prodigious targets that provide their attack with a cushion.
"The fact that opponents have successfully chased down Australian targets in excess of 300 and 400 in the past six months is an indication that McGrath and Warne are still missed."
- PETER LALOR