Lee desperate for quick recovery

Lee desperate for quick recovery

Brett Lee has set his sights on playing in the first Test against West Indies despite being sent home from India with an elbow injury. Lee has had ankle and side problems before the latest setback, but he intends to fight for his spot.

"I will be doing everything I possibly can to make sure I'm back on the cricket field ASAP," Lee said after arriving back in Sydney. "I still enjoy my cricket and I still think the way that I've been bowling, I've been really happy with my personal form. I have to make sure I stay nice and fit."

Now 32, Lee must edge ahead of Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus and Stuart Clark to add to his 76 Tests. Tim Nielsen, the Australia coach, said Lee was sent home to give him the best chance of recovering.

"It is not a case of writing him off at all," Nielsen said in the Sunday Mail. "We are just being careful and prudent. It is only three weeks before the first Test so we want to get to the source of the problem the best way we can and get the best diagnosis."

Lee hurt himself in the opening ODI against India last Sunday after bowling six overs. He insisted the problem was not related to his appearances in the Champions League Twenty20, and he is not the only player with a recent heavy workload. Australia have been hit by a series of injuries since the Ashes tour and have less than a month before the Test series against West Indies begins in Brisbane on November 26.