Dennis Lillee called his treatise on his craft, `The Art of Fast Bowling'. It was an art that he contributed immeasurably to in a Test career that spanned 13 seasons. Retirement did nothing to douse the flame and since then, he has worked with youngsters and established internationals all over the world in an effort to pass on the skills that made him a legend. Excerpts from an exclusive interview.

On the current shortage of genuinely great fast bowlers
The older guard is starting to get phased out. They're in that final part of their career where you go down a peg and rely more on accuracy. There are a few of those guys around, like Waqar [Younis], Wasim [Akram] and Allan Donald. Till recently, you also had Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose. Now, we're seeing some new blokes. There's Jason Gillespie, Shoaib Akhtar and Brett Lee. They're in the highest echelon when it comes to pace but haven't done enough to be tagged as great. Maybe one day they will.

… No athlete can perform day in, day out, at top speed. That's the case now in international cricket with the schedule so packed. South Africa really looked after Donald. They rested him and brought him in when he was really needed. That will happen more and more and you might find that, like with baseball pitchers, you'll have a pool and a rotation system. I've been pushing for that in Australia for 10 years, and they're just starting to listen.

On how protective gear has changed the game
From a batsman's point of view, there's the feeling of security that comes with knowing that you're not going to break your arm or your head. For a bowler, too, you know that you're not going to hurt the batsman badly enough to maim him or worse. In our day, it was always at the back of your mind when you were bowling express pace that you could seriously injure someone. Just hitting someone was okay but you didn't want to do serious damage.

With helmets so common now, I think more guys are being hit while playing the short ball. It's not that the bowlers are any faster – no one is faster than Thommo [Jeff Thomson] was – but with protective equipment making you feel more secure, you probably stay in line a lot more rather than taking evasive action or playing the cut or hook.

On the Indian fast bowling scene
I think there's a much broader base out there now; there was hardly anything before. At any one time now, you could probably pick six guys who could play for India and do a pretty good job. When I first came here, there was one great bowler, Kapil [Dev] – a swing bowler, medium fast – but you'd have struggled to name another. Now, though you haven't got an express quickie, as in 150-160 kph – there are very few around anywhere for that matter – you have guys who can bowl at 140, which is getting up there.

… [Javagal] Srinath is one guy who had a bit of aggression and the ability to bowl good, long spells. He could swing the ball and bowl equally well in Tests and one-dayers. I'd say he was a good all-round fast bowler. [Venkatesh] Prasad bowled very good line and length, and he had one of the best slower balls around. He was very well suited to the one-day game. Zaheer Khan has good pace, a very good yorker, and he can swing the ball. It's an added bonus that he's a left-hander. Ashish Nehra, again left-handed, not express obviously, but he has very good control and he can swing it around. The great thing with these two is that they're still young and have a lot to learn. Tinu [Yohannan], is someone who can bowl a bit quicker. When he gets it all together, he can bowl good outswing at pace. Being so tall, he gets good bounce when he stands up nice and high.

On chucking
I'll say two things. Firstly, the law is nowhere near what it should be. The other thing is that the umpires should be stronger. Unfortunately, their authority has been taken away and watered down to near nothing by the ICC.

… Technology has advanced so much that we are now able to freeze-frame each minute step of the action, which lets you see things that you couldn't see before. It's also very important, when checking whether someone throws, not to take just the one angle. The same delivery should also be seen from side-on... from all angles.

… The tests (to prove the legitimacy of an action) can differ. If you have got through a test some way or the other, you're in the clear even if you do throw. You have a licence because everyone says you're clear. There's a lot of work to be done on chucking.

For the full interview get a copy of the August 2002 issue of Wisden Asia Cricket

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