Shayan
ODI Debutant
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Brett Lee has been passed fit and will play in tomorrow's crucial third Test , while Glenn McGrath cannot yet be ruled out of contention, after both players took part in a pre-match training session at Old Trafford.
Lee spent two nights in a Birmingham hospital after complaining of soreness and swelling around his left knee, but responded well to treatment and came through his net session with no ill-effects. "Brett Lee is fit and available for selection," an Australia spokesman told AFP. "Glenn McGrath will be assessed again tonight and tomorrow [Thursday] morning and the team will be finalised then."
McGrath remains a long-shot for this match, after he tore ankle ligaments by stepping on a cricket ball moments before the Edgbaston Test got underway, but when asked if he was out of the equation, Ponting refused to rule him out entirely.
"I won't say that definitely, no," he added. "He has come a long way from being on crutches a few days ago to getting round quite freely now. He's improved quite dramatically. We are still keeping our fingers crossed for him. But with an injury like he's had you'd want to know how it would respond after one stint of bowling."
McGrath hit the stumps with the first ball he sent down and had worked up a lively pace by the end of the session, although Errol Alcott, the team physio, had been cautious in his initial assessment.
"He had a scan on Monday for professional curiosity which disclosed extensive ligament damage which we were aware of when the accident occurred," Alcott explained. "We will now have to wait for the full medical evidence on the injury before we know how long he will be out of action."
McGrath's early return would be a massive boost for Australia, after the disappointment of losing the second Test at Edgbaston. He picked up match figures of 9 for 82 in the first match at Lord's, and had he played in the second game, Australia might well be 2-0 up in the series already.
England, meanwhile, have delayed naming their XI until the morning of the match, with Chris Tremlett an outside bet for a Test debut if the pitch proves to be as hard and bouncy as the groundsman, Peter Marron, suggests. If he did play, it is likely to be at the expense of the off-colour Matthew Hoggard.
Lee spent two nights in a Birmingham hospital after complaining of soreness and swelling around his left knee, but responded well to treatment and came through his net session with no ill-effects. "Brett Lee is fit and available for selection," an Australia spokesman told AFP. "Glenn McGrath will be assessed again tonight and tomorrow [Thursday] morning and the team will be finalised then."
McGrath remains a long-shot for this match, after he tore ankle ligaments by stepping on a cricket ball moments before the Edgbaston Test got underway, but when asked if he was out of the equation, Ponting refused to rule him out entirely.
"I won't say that definitely, no," he added. "He has come a long way from being on crutches a few days ago to getting round quite freely now. He's improved quite dramatically. We are still keeping our fingers crossed for him. But with an injury like he's had you'd want to know how it would respond after one stint of bowling."
McGrath hit the stumps with the first ball he sent down and had worked up a lively pace by the end of the session, although Errol Alcott, the team physio, had been cautious in his initial assessment.
"He had a scan on Monday for professional curiosity which disclosed extensive ligament damage which we were aware of when the accident occurred," Alcott explained. "We will now have to wait for the full medical evidence on the injury before we know how long he will be out of action."
McGrath's early return would be a massive boost for Australia, after the disappointment of losing the second Test at Edgbaston. He picked up match figures of 9 for 82 in the first match at Lord's, and had he played in the second game, Australia might well be 2-0 up in the series already.
England, meanwhile, have delayed naming their XI until the morning of the match, with Chris Tremlett an outside bet for a Test debut if the pitch proves to be as hard and bouncy as the groundsman, Peter Marron, suggests. If he did play, it is likely to be at the expense of the off-colour Matthew Hoggard.
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