Brett Lee might just become the bowling allrounder that Shane Warne has not quite become and Paul Reiffel only resembled towards the end of his Test career. Lee, whose undefeated 60 today was the latest display of his enterprising talent with the bat, has plenty of things in his favour as he works on improving his batting and thereby reaffirming the depth of the Australian line-up.

Technically, he plays straight which means he should keep out good balls enabling him to protect his wicket long enough to give him a chance of making useful lower-order runs. When he goes on the attack Lee has genuine power. You can see that natural athlete's strength when he throws from the outfield.

At this level, grace can turn to raw power pretty quickly. When he lanuches into a big drive down the ground Lee has ample power to clear most boundaries. Temperamentally, he has that easy-going attitude that helps lower-order batsmen play their natural game.

He is capable of defending because he is a well-rounded cricketer, but in most situations he plays as if he has no worries in the world. That's hardly surprising given the formidable batsmen above him, particularly Adam Gilchrist, and the positive attitude all the Australians take onto the field.

Lee is one of nature's more pleasant people. Even when he was struggling for form with the ball on the Ashes tour a few months ago, he never stopped smiling. That easy nature shows in his cricket. He seems capable of not letting lapses in form or luck affect him too much. And as he grows into Test cricket more and more, his sunny nature might shine more often when he's batting as it will always do when he's bowling.

Warne remains useful with the bat, and potentially damaging. But his knack for nicking outside off stump gets him out too often for him to contribute enough runs to be considered an allrounder.

Only late in his career did Reiffel feel comfortable enough to bat near his best. Lee should be able to work on his batting in the knowledge that, given half-decent form with the ball, he will be a permanent member of this fine team. That security which Reiffel rarely enjoyed and that sound technique which Warne does not quite possess might well make the difference in Lee developing into a significant contributor with the bat.

Lee will not rank alongside Shaun Pollock, Jacques Kallis or Chris Cairns as a top contemporary allrounder, but there is no reason why he cannot climb to a level just below those players. And do it with a bigger smile than most.

Mark Ray has covered Australian cricket since 1987 and is also the author of a number of books on the game.

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