| Player: | B Lee |
Brett Lee is determined that age and injury shall not weary him. Always positive and flashing a smile from a toothpaste advertisement, he insists his body "still feels really young", but after years as Australia's youthful pin-up he has entered fatherhood and his early 30s. At first there was the pace, but then came the injury and a long layoff. It is a recurring theme in Lee's career as he has aimed for numbers that would result in licence suspensions on any Australian road. His speed thrills, but after overcoming a second serious ankle problem in 2007, there is no guarantee he will be able to continue slamming his foot down. Despite planning a post-cricket career in Bollywood - he already has a hit song with You're The One For Me and is learning Hindi - Lee is confident of delaying the all-singing, all-dancing routine for a few more seasons. One difference in his recovery last year was Australia needed his return to health. Previously Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie provided the cover, but the changes in the attack left Lee as the main man. And he excelled. Against Sri Lanka he was Man of the Series for his 16 wickets, another 24 came against India and by the time the West Indies campaign was over he had 58 Test victims at 21.55 in the post-McGrath era. The Allan Border Medal was another reward, along with the Test Player of the Year prize and the Pura Cup, which he helped seal with 97, his highest first-class score.
Over the past few years Lee's outlook has matured - essential variety has been added to the bouncer-yorker method - and he has become consistent to the point where the team analysts struggled to log a bad ball in some 2006-07 Ashes innings. Twenty England wickets helped him move on from the 2005 defeat, but the summer ended in disappointment when his ankle turned painfully at training in New Zealand.
Lee's career hasn't always been easy. He struggled against accusations of throwing, beamers, stress fractures and other injuries, and had a strangely barren first Ashes series in 2001. Three years later he U-turned from ankle surgery, but was stuck in the pits of the dressing room as he ran drinks and sponges in nine consecutive Tests. He came back for the 2005 Ashes series and earned plaudits for his brave performances with bat and ball. He nearly pulled off a win for Australia with a battling 43 at Edgbaston, but his partner-in-crime Michael Kasprowicz fell at the contentious final hurdle. Andrew Flintoff's consoling of Lee seconds after the catch was 2005's defining image. Less than a year later the duet with Kasprowicz reformed and a nail-biting win over South Africa eased the pain of the previous near-miss. It had been an important summer as he assumed the role of attack leader when McGrath first struggled for impact and then pulled out of tours to South Africa and Bangladesh. Lee moved into the position he had craved since crashing on to the Test scene with 5 for 47 against India, and celebrated 89 international wickets for the season with lawnmower, hunting and leaping celebrations. With McGrath gone for good, Lee has inherited the full-time paternal responsibilities.