Dennis Keith Lillee, AM, MBE (born 18 July 1949) is a retired Australian cricketer rated as the "outstanding fast bowler of his generation".

The following season, during the series against the Rest of the World XI, which had been arranged in place of the cancelled series against South Africa, Lillee announced himself during the first innings of the second unofficial "Test" match at his home ground in Perth, destroying a powerful batting lineup that included Garry Sobers, Clive Lloyd, Rohan Kanhai and Sunil Gavaskar to finish with 8/29 in only 7 overs, which would remain his career-best bowling figures in an innings.

He returned to the bowling crease towards the end of the season, guiding Perth Cricket Club to the final at the WACA Ground.

Lillee persevered, undergoing an intensive physiotherapy routine, formulated by sports scientist Frank Pyke,[16] and remodelling his bowling action.

However, the extra exertion created "hot spots" in his back and not wanting to reaggravate his previous condition, he made himself unavailable for the 1977 tour of England.

Remaining in Australia to do television commentary on the tour, Lillee was isolated from the furore in England surrounding the plans for the breakaway professional competition, WSC.

During the season of his return to official cricket, Lillee collected 35 Test wickets in six matches against the West Indies and England, and gave Australia's bowling attack stability while the selectors experimented with the team.

In the World Series Cup, his changed style helped to bring him 20 wickets (at 12.7 average) in eight ODIs, including 4/12 against West Indies and 4/28 against England, both at the SCG.

However, the tour of Pakistan that followed was ruined for Lillee by flat batting pitches prepared by local curators to blunt his effectiveness.

After breaking Richie Benaud's Australian Test record of 248 wickets, Lillee toured England in 1981 when his preparation was compromised by a viral infection.

Granted a testimonial for 1981–82, Lillee's season got off to a poor start when he was involved in the infamous incident with Javed Miandad (see below) in the first Test of the summer.

[23] Bowling as a first-change, Lillee had an uneventful tour of New Zealand in March and April 1982 before suffering a serious knee injury in the first Ashes Test at the WACA Ground in November of the same year.

Later in the year, his ODI career finished during the third World Cup in England when he conceded 52 runs from 12 overs in the match against the West Indies at Lord's.

The scorecard entry 'c Marsh b Lillee' appeared 95 times in Tests, a partnership record between wicket-keeper and bowler that is yet to be broken.

In 1988 the Western Australian Cricket Association honoured the two players by naming a new grandstand at the WACA Ground the Lillee-Marsh Stand.

Source:[27] During a Test at the WACA Ground in December 1979 between Australia and England, Lillee went to the crease with an aluminium bat manufactured by a company owned by a friend.

Australian captain Greg Chappell thought that the ball should have gone for a four, and instructed Rodney Hogg to deliver a conventional wooden bat to Lillee.

As this was happening, English captain Mike Brearley complained to the umpires that using such a bat was against the spirit of the game and that it was damaging the ball.

In a fit of pique, Lillee threw "the offending lump of metal fully 40 yards towards the pavilion",[29] and grudgingly took the wooden bat.

Lillee and Rod Marsh believed that the odds were so ludicrous that, via a third party, they each put a small wager on the outcome, later describing their actions as a "joke".

[35] In his autobiography, Lillee claimed that he played again as a preparation for a possible comeback to the Australian team that was suggested by the then captain Allan Border.

[36] Since retirement Lillee has dedicated himself to mentoring and coaching young bowlers, most notably Brett Lee, Shaun Tait, and Mitchell Johnson.