Australia has been put on high alert to avoid a Brett Lee burnout with its blue-chip quick having to shoulder a big bowling workload.
Test skipper Ricky Ponting admitted that Lee was "completely spent" in the closing stages of the Antigua Test, while coach Tim Nielsen says managing the load of Australia's top paceman is now a huge challenge.
Since Shane Warne retired Australia has played without a form spinner, and with Mitchell Johnson now struggling for penetration, so Lee has had to shoulder the bulk of the bowling workload.
When Australia had Warne and Glenn McGrath, Lee was able to be unleashed with venom in short, explosive spells.
But now there are growing concerns he could become too much of a stock bowler which would not suit his style and push him to the brink of exhaustion.
In Australia's last six Tests, Lee has sent down 1673 deliveries which is 371 more than Stuart Clark and 178 more than the younger Johnson.
On top of that, Lee has been Australia's main go-to man in one-day cricket for several years and also played in the initial stages of the Indian Premier League.
Ponting's conundrum is that Lee has been bowling so superbly, taking 13 Test wickets at 19.53 in the Caribbean, that it is almost impossible to rip the ball out of his hand.
But Ponting, who even used Mike Hussey's medium-pace to spread the load in Antigua, admits second-choice bowlers like Michael Clarke and Andrew Symonds are going to have to be used more often.
"Michael Clarke and Symo are guys that I'm probably going to have to call a little bit more on now, with Shane (Warne) and Glenn (McGrath) not being around," Ponting said.
With a marathon cricket schedule over the next 18 months, there seems little doubt that Australia will be forced to increasingly rest Lee from one-day cricket.
Australia would be reluctant to rest its premier bowler from a major one-day tournament, such as the Champions Trophy in October, but it may have to consider it if it wants him fit and firing for the 2009 Ashes.
Asked if managing Lee's workload was now a major challenge, Nielsen replied: "Without a doubt.
"I think the selectors have been pretty clear and pretty open in saying that at different times they will look at giving players a bit of a spell if they need to.
"We try to give them that information and say Binga's bowled an abnormally high number of balls at the moment, and he's done it back to back over two weeks and in back-to-back Tests, we just need to be a bit careful with what we're going to do with him.
"We need Binga leading these young players through, and Stuart Clark helping out the Mitchell Johnsons and the Doug Bollingers, but at the same time we can't afford to blow them up either, so it's a bit of balancing act."
Australia seems set to persist with Johnson, the left-armer who has taken five wickets at 46.8 in his first overseas Test tour.
"I think it's all part of the learning curve for Mitch," Nielsen said.
"Every time he bowls in these conditions or somewhere else in the world other than Australia he's going to be better for the opportunity and we've just got to be mindful of that."
- BEN DORRIES