NEW DELHI, Sept 10: Australia’s speed demon Brett Lee on Wednesday defended his tribe against chucking accusations, saying that fast bowlers can produce express delieveries with a clean action.

“The thinking that fast bowlers chuck is an optical illusion,” Lee said, adding the issue was a figment of people’s imagination.

“People think ‘we cannot bowl at 150-160 kmh (kilometers per hour — 93-100 miles per hour), so how these guys do it?’. They should realise that one can bowl really fast.”

The 26-year-old Australian and Pakistan’s Shoaib Akhtar were the two prominent fast bowlers whose actions had raised eyebrows before both were cleared by the International Cricket Council.

“I had my action scrutinised and then cleared. There’s a lot of hyper extension and the wrist too plays an important role when you try to bowl fast,” said Lee.

Lee, touring India on a business trip, also defended Australia against sledging, saying his team always tried to play fair and square.

“Sledging is rude when it becomes racist or the remarks are personal. But friendly banter is part and parcel of the game,” said the bowler who has so far grabbed 125 wickets in Tests and 137 in one-day internationals.

“People must realise we play fair and square. There have been one or two instances when it has got out of control, but overall we enjoy good relations with all the teams on and off the field,” he said.

Lee said he was keenly looking forward to bowling in India on his team’s upcoming tour for a triangular one-day series because it was a big challenge for him.

“The top six Indian batsmen are good and it’s always a challenge to bowl against them. And Sachin Tendulkar is a world-class player, you cannot prepare for him.”

The triangular series, with New Zealand as the third team, will be played in India in October-November.—AFP