Brett Lee picked up 5 wickets against England Lions while his fellow fast bowlers went wicketless, and thus sealed his place in the first Ashes Test atleast. While Brett Lee was out injured, Mitchell Johnson and Peter Siddle had surged ahead in team rankings. Only the third fast bowler slot was open and Brett Lee, Stuart Clark and Hilfenhaus the three main contenders for it. But this five wicket haul has pretty much sealed the place for Brett Lee.“Without giving too much away, the plan was to scuff the ball up as quickly as possible when the ball goes flat in the middle overs,” Lee said. ”In a meeting before the game we tried to work out ways that we would bowl effectively in Cardiff, with the ball being scuffed up on that type of wicket. It took about four or five overs to get it going and they threw me the ball. That’s when I feel at my deadliest.”
The spell of sustained late movement, which included being on a hat-trick after he bowled Joe Denly and had Ian Bell lbw, reminded Lee’s team-mates of his performance in Antigua last year when he took 5 for 59. “When the ball is tailing in, it’s pretty hard to get the ball out of my hand,” Lee said. “You always feel like you’re in the game as a fast bowler. It did take me back to playing against West Indies, so it was fun times.”
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