Lee To Have Surgery

[pies4ever]

Australian cricket
Lee to undergo surgery
March 20, 2004


Brett Lee, who was forced to return home from Australia's tour of Sri Lanka, will undergo minor surgery on his ankle on March 23. Lee suffered the injury during the tour match against the Sri Lankan Board President's XI in Colombo, and underwent further evaluation by specialists, with diagnostic scans, in Sydney this week.

He will be operated on for posterior impingement of his left ankle by Kim Slater at Castlecrag Private Hospital in Sydney, and will then undergo a lengthy rehabilitation process, though it is not yet known for how long he will be sidelined.

"Obviously I have been bowling with some discomfort for a little while now, and despite receiving plenty of treatment on the ankle, it was still causing me some trouble," said Lee. "After consulting with my surgeon and the Australian team support staff, the decision to have the ankle operated on and try to resolve the problem once and for all is the sensible option."

Lee hoped that a long-term solution would put an end to his injury woes. "While it's disappointing not to be playing right now, I need to make sure the ankle is right so that I can look to be playing in the longer term, rather than trying to apply a short term fix," he said. "After the operation, I will be doing everything I can with rehabilitation to get back to 100% fitness and hopefully playing for Australia as soon as I can."

Trevor Hohns, the chairman of Australia's selectors, stressed the importance of Lee taking the rehabilitation process seriously. "Brett is a player we regard as a long-term prospect for Australia, and in that sense we need to make sure he is fully rehabilitated so that he can continue his career over a long period," he said. "The most important thing for Brett is that the injury problem is addressed and he has ample time to heal properly, so that when he returns to competitive cricket, he is fully fit and injury-free."

Lee faces a battle to be fit for the tour of India later this year, as Australia - fresh on the heels of a superb series victory in Sri Lanka - bid once again to conquer what has been called their "final frontier".

© Wisden Cricinfo Ltd


cheers bryan..!!

[i_luv_tarkyn!]

damn.....
sorry not a big fan of brett

[Johnson#26]

I think Kasprowicz has over taken Lee in the senior 11, with Lee as 12th man. Binga has some catch up work to do now with Tait & Williams snapping at his heals.