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Brett Lee

Foward to Shane Lee



Born: 8 November 1976, Wollongong, NSW
Major Teams: Australia, New South Wales.
Known As: Brett Lee
Batting Style: Right Hand Bat
Bowling Style: Right Arm Fast
Test Debut: Australia v India at Melbourne, 2nd Test, 1999/00
ODI Debut: Australia v Pakistan at Brisbane, Carlton & United Series, 1999/00


Statistical Record:

TESTS
 (including 31/03/2000)
                      M    I  NO  Runs   HS     Ave     SR 100  50  Ct St
Batting               5    5   1    47   27   11.75  45.19   -   -   1  -

                       O      M     R   W    Ave  Best   5 10    SR  Econ
Bowling              169.4   45   498  31  16.06  5-47   2  -  32.8  2.93

ONE-DAY INTERNATIONALS
 (including 16/04/2000)
                      M    I  NO  Runs   HS     Ave     SR 100  50  Ct St
Batting              17    5   1    31   24*   7.75  65.95   -   -   1  -

                       O      M     R   W    Ave  Best  4w 5w    SR  Econ
Bowling              144.1    9   611  29  21.06  5-27   -  1  29.8  4.23

FIRST-CLASS
 (last updated 02/08/2000)
                      M    I  NO  Runs   HS     Ave     SR 100  50  Ct St
Batting              23   26   7   237   39   12.47  50.42   -   -   6  -

                       O      M     R   W    Ave  Best   5 10    SR  Econ
Bowling              749.2  172  2237 108  20.71  6-25   5  -  41.6  2.98

Profile:

Given that he has long been regarded within Australian cricketing circles as a sensational young talent and that he has carried a tag as one of his country's fastest ever bowlers virtually right from the time of his first class debut in 1995, it is probably no great surprise that Brett Lee has duly become one of the world's most exciting pace bowling prospects. The younger brother of one-day international all-rounder Shane, he is indeed a thrilling player to watch. He approaches the bowling crease at a bristling gallop from a long run-up, thrusts his front arm high, and then releases the ball at thundering speed from a nicely balanced side-on position. The pace that he generates is disarming and it is not uncommon for the speed of his deliveries to be clocked at a rate well in excess of 140 kilometres per hour; in April 2000, he even unleashed one measured at 156 kph in a one-day international in Johannesburg. It is, in fact, this attribute above all else which is the crucial factor in allowing him to defeat batsmen with a mix of short and full deliveries and to force them into errant strokeplay off both the back and front foot. Like so many good fast bowlers before him, Lee has already been forced to endure adversity along the pathway to success, however: he sustained stress fractures to his back and was kept out of the game for several months before kickstarting his career again in late 1998. It then took a while for him to re-establish himself, and his cause was not helped in some quarters after he produced a stinging and sustained display of on-field aggression toward veteran David Boon in a State match between New South Wales and Tasmania in Sydney during the 1998-99 season. His talent has seen him overcome most obstacles, though, and proof can be found in his rapid and startlingly successful accession to international company in recent times. Five wickets came in a sizzling debut Test innings (against India in Melbourne in 1999-2000) and neither the pace of his wicket- taking nor the generally unsettling effect that he tends to generate among rival batting line-ups has effectively relented since. Whilst the blond-headed Lee is only young and is naturally still learning, the fact that he has created such a mark and has collected such a steady rush of international wickets says much in itself. His future looks gilt-edged.

(John Polack, May 2000)



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