Dennis Lillee - Machismo personified

Australian cricketer Dennis Lillee talks to officials about his illegal aluminium bat during the first Test against England at Perth, December 1979. Lillee eventually reverted to using a traditional wooden bat.

But all that changed in February 1973.

Adversity is something we must all face. Your degree of success depends on how you choose to react to adverse situations. For cricketers, particularly pace bowlers, there’s always a constant battle with injuries of the back. Lillee was no exception.

On a hot afternoon in the West Indies, as he was sending down a full-speed delivery, his back caved in completely. He doubled up, unable to continue. Australia’s most energetic, exciting player had been cut down in his prime. Diagnosed with three stress fractures of the lower vertebrae caused by the violence of his bowling action, the then-23-year-old youngster spent six weeks wearing a plaster cast covering his entire torso.

It seemed like the end of the road for Lillee – he could not even bathe or dress himself without help. His bowling days seemed to be over, and after the cast was removed, he played club cricket in Perth as a specialist batsman. Doctors were even worried that he would struggle to lead a normal, healthy life. In short, things were looking bleak.

And then Lillee’s fast-bowling philosophy went to work. He reasoned that even if he had to die, he would do it on the 22-yard strip where he plied his trade. Against all odds, he set himself the task of returning to top-flight cricket.

Dr. Frank Pyke, a noted sports scientist, became his chief medical consultant. Under Pyke’s guidance, Lillee healed well, and marked his return to cricket in the 1974-75 Ashes series, having re-modelled his bowling action. The once-lanky bowler, now with a more powerful frame, marked an “X” on England all-rounder Tony Greig‘s forehead ahead of the first Test in Brisbane; an inspired Australia, buoyed by his return and the emergence of Jeff Thomson, went on to wallop the Poms 4-1. Lill-ee had returned.

Other quills will speak of his triumphs on the cricket field, most notably his 10-wicket haul in the famous Boxing Day Test of 1981 against the mighty West Indies.

Western Australia will remember him for galvanizing his side to a 15-run win over Queensland, defending a small target of 77. Lillee sometimes took showmanship a bit too far – characterized by his use of an aluminium bat at the WACA Test with England or getting into a needless controversy with Pakistan’s Javed Miandad. He was also a big draw at the Kerry Packer-orchestrated World Series Cricket, and he signed off from international cricket in style, with a wicket off his last delivery in Test cricket – completing 355 dismissals in that arena.

Instrumental in setting up the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai, Lillee has mentored many international stars during his 25-year long stint with this academy. He would also bowl to cricket teams touring Australia as part of the ACB Chairman’s XI till 1999-2000, where he partnered with his son Adam.

Gaining a formidable reputation as a fast-bowling coach, he even guided a struggling Brett Lee – considered by most Australians to be Lillee’s natural successor – back into form and the national reckoning when the bowler was going through a slump.

Today, as he turns 64, Dennis Keith Lillee still remains one of cricket’s colossal figures. Happy birthday mate!