Lee wants fast bowlers to be patient

Australia's fast bowlers believe patience will be the key on long, hot days in the field during the upcoming Test series in India. None of Australia's bowlers have played a Test in India and while the focus has largely been on the selection of a spinner, Australia will be looking to the pace trio of Brett Lee, Stuart Clark and Mitchell Johnson for the majority of the wickets.

"Patience is definitely going to be a word that we will be using through the whole Test series," Lee told the Herald Sun. "I just think the key to bowling over here, going on what you read and what you hear from past players, is to be nice and patient.

"We are up against world-class batsmen, we are up against wickets that aren't going to be conducive to fast bowling, and the weather is going to be really hot. We have to try as a team to block all that stuff out and just really focus on the way we know, to be nice and patient."

Although he was overlooked throughout the 2004-05 tour of India, lack of experience is not an issue for Lee, who has 289 Test wickets and will almost certainly jump to fourth on Australia's all-time list during the trip. With Johnson battling for form, Lee's major support could come from Clark, who said he would be aiming to bowl straight to suit the conditions.

"The wickets become harder to bat on," Clark said. "They don't bounce, there is no pace in them and they don't carry. Lbw and bowled become a really useful mode of dismissal, rather than just caught. In Australia a lot of the guys get caught behind the wicket. Bowled and lbws are a big way of getting out over here."

The three main fast men will probably have support from the allrounder Shane Watson, who is preparing for a likely return to Test cricket three years after his most recent Test. However, a viral fever has laid Watson low this week and he is in doubt for the final tour match, which starts on Thursday.