That means the veteran right-arm paceman – who formed a deadly Test partnership with the legendary Glenn McGrath – could make his final appearance for the Sydney Sixers against Sydney Thunder next Thursday.
Lee, 38, took 310 wickets in 76 Test matches at an average of 30.81. That makes him Australia’s fourth-highest Test wicket-taker of all time, with only Shane Warne, McGrath and Dennis Lillee surpassing his tally.
“It’s been an amazing and emotional 20 years and I’ve enjoyed every single moment of it,” said Lee, announcing his retirement at the Sydney Cricket Ground today. “I’m excited and emotional – certainly happy that I’ve made the right decision.”
Lee – known as ‘Binga’ – was renowned as one of the fastest and most fearsome bowlers in the world, regularly hurling down deliveries at speeds of up to 93mph. Born in New South Wales, the 6ft 2ins paceman was a key figure in the Australia sides that dominated world cricket in the 1990s and 2000s. He was a World Cup winner in 2003, and won three of his four Ashes series against England – including a 5-0 whitewash in 2007.
He retired from Test cricket in 2010 and from international limited overs cricket in 2012. Altogether he took more than 700 wickets for Australia across all three forms of the international game – Test, one-day internationals and T20. He was also a hard-hitting batsman, with a useful average of 20.
In December, 2013, Lee invited Piers Morgan to face six deliveries from him in the nets at Melbourne after the former Daily Mirror editor had delivered scathing criticism of England’s batting in that summer’s Ashes series against the Aussies. The resulting footage attracted millions of viewers who relished the spectacle of Lee peppering the hapless hack with a successful of fast, short-pitched deliveries. It subsequently emerged that one delivery from Lee left Morgan nursing a fractured rib. Former New Zealand fast bowler Sir Richard Hadlee was among those who subsequently criticised the stunt as dangerous and foolhardy.
