Chennai, Aug 30: Dennis Lillee, the Australian fast bowling legend believes that it will be tough for Indian spearhead Zaheer Khan to make a full-fledged comeback. It can be recalled that Zaheer broke mid-way at the first Test between India and England at the Lords and was later withdrawn from the whole series due to an ankle injury.

Lille who oversees the MRF Pace Foundation, was quoted by the Times of India as saying, "I think Zaheer's injury happened due to stress. If he was 18 years old, his recovery would have been faster. But when a player suffers a fresh injury at 33, he naturally takes more time to get back into action." And added, "I'm not a doctor, so it's not possible for me to point out if his international career is all but over." The former Australian fast bowler was also impressed with Varun Aaron who has been rushed into the Indian team in England in place of the injured Ishant Sharma. He said, "He is a rare talent. I'm extremely happy that Varun has made it to the national squad. He is young and needs some time before he flourishes at the highest level. He came at the MRF Pace Foundation as a 16-year-old boy and we all have put in a lot of effort to groom him. I am confident he would excel against England if given a chance."

Speaking about the future of Aaron, considering the fact that he has suffered two stress factures in his back, Lille said, "Varun is still very young and his injuries are completely healed. But he should be more careful now and he has to learn how to protect himself despite playing a lot of cricket."