Cricket: Australia bowler Brett Lee's chances of playing in the World Cup hang in the balance as he must wait up to 10 days for a definitive assessment of his ankle injury.
The 30-year-old New South Wales paceman was ruled out of the current Chappell-Hadlee one-day series against New Zealand after slipping during a fielding drill yesterday.
He consulted leading Sydney specialist Kim Slater and although x-rays revealed there was no break subsequent scans have revealed ligament damage.
But Australia's medical staff will wait at least another week before making any decision on his availability for the World Cup in the Caribbean, which starts next month.
"Brett has suffered a serious ligament injury to his left ankle," Australia physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said.
"He was seen by an orthopaedic surgeon who decided that he does not require surgery and will be initially managed with crutches and a brace.
"The surgeon will review him in a week's time and assess his prospects of playing in the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup.
"It is difficult to put an exact time on his recovery at this early stage. This should become clearer in the next seven to 10 days."
Lee, himself, is unsure of his participation.
"The good news is that I don't need an operation, I don't need any screws in the bones which is positive," he said.
"At the moment probably all I can say is that I'm 50-50 for the World Cup so fingers crossed."