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Showing posts from August, 2018

Dennis Lillee’s Aluminium 'ComBat' in the '79 Ashes

Greg Chappel walking out of the ground with the ComBat Rated as an "outstanding fast bowler of his generation", Dennis Keith Lillee was a world class bowler with a fiery temperament and a never-give-up attitude. One of the greats in his own right, Dennis Lillee was the epitome of a great Australian fast bowler who unsettled batsmen with his steaming run-up and raw, searing pace. But in a bizarre incident in December 1979 at Perth, in a test match between Australia and England, Dennis Lillee decided to walk out with an aluminium bat! Much to the surprise of his own teammates, let alone the opposition, he decided to keep playing with the aluminium version as there were no rules against using such a bat during that time.  Apart from the irritating, clunking sound that the bat was making, the real trouble began when Lillee hit a ball down the ground that went for three runs. In the Australian dressing room, captain Greg Chappell thought that the ball should have gon