Warne has eye on record

Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne is within two wickets of claiming the world record for most wickets in a calendar year.

And the man who holds the record, Dennis Lillee with 85 taken in 1981, is the person least concerned that he will lose the record.

With the first Test against South Africa in Perth on Friday, the way seems clear for Warne to claim the record against a side that has traditionally struggled with his bowling.

Lillee told The Courier Mail, "It's all his, he deserves it."

"He can come and get it. There isn't a bit of sadness there for me in passing the record to the greatest bowler we have seen."

"He has had to overcome a lot of setbacks to get where he is."

"He has had an amazing career and I am really looking forward to being at the WACA when he breaks the record," Lillee said.

Former Australian left-arm fast bowler Bruce Reid has been helping the home side in its preparations for the Test and he believes that while the WACA has not been especially friendly for leg-spinners in the past, the pitch should provide more turn than has been the case in the past.

Meanwhile, in their bid to beat the Warne bogey, the South Africans have enlisted the help of young West Australian leg-spinners to provide practice for the forthcoming match.

The Australians are preparing for a battering from the South African attack of Makhaya Ntini, Shaun Pollock, Andre Nel and Charl Langeveldt.

The South Africans will be playing a Test in Perth for the first time, something they believe was directly connected to the fact that one of the world's fastest bowlers, Allan Donald, was part of South African teams of the past.

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