Lee suffered the injury during Australia’s warm-up match against Zimbabwe, which they lost by one run, and the team has already asked for a replacement, with Doug Bollinger and Ryan Harris being the frontrunners to replace Lee.

The injury comes as a major blow for Lee, who has not played for his country since October last year and was making his return from an elbow surgery. Lee felt pain after taking 1 for 13 in four overs and later had MRI scans, and a team spokesman said the strain was unrelated to his elbow trouble.

“It’s a muscle strain,” the team spokesman told AAP. “We have gone to the ICC Technical Committee to ask for a replacement player.”

The latest injury has raised further doubts about Lee’s future for Australia. Lee, 33, had retired from Tests in February this year but wanted to remain a key Twenty20 and one-day player. A broken thumb curtailed his IPL season and although he retained his Cricket Australia contract, his ongoing injury worries must be a concern for the team management.

Australia is scheduled to play their second warm-up game against the Windward Islands on Thursday before their opening match of the tournament against Pakistan on Sunday.

“Mahi is a great captain and player. He grabbed the bull by its horns against Kings XI Punjab,” said Bollinger.

“He’s captained very well,” said the Australian left-arm pacer after returning splendid figures of 4 for 13 that flattened the Chargers hopes and set up a comprehensive win for the Chennai Super Kings.

Bollinger said that it was a question of adapting to different wicket conditions that was the key to a pace bowler’s success in Indian conditions.

“In Chennai, the wicket has some pace and bounce. In Delhi, it’s a bit slow and you have to hit the deck hard. In New Zealand (where he played a Test series prior to his stint in the IPL) too, there were different wickets. It’s a question of adapting to the wicket conditions,” he said.

Asked about the pitch at the D Y Patil Stadium for the semi-final, the Australian said it started as a track offering good bounce before becoming a bit slow in the latter part.

“It was a wicket with some good bounce in it when we batted. When we were bowling it became a bit slow and also turned. But we enjoyed playing on it,” he said.

Describing his four-wicket haul, his second in the competition, as “pretty exciting”, Bollinger said he was optimistic of his team’s chances in the final against Sachin Tendulkar-led Mumbai Indians on Sunday. “We have a good chance if we play as well as we did. We back our ability. They have a great team but we will give it everything,” he said.

Doug Bollinger was the man again to make the difference. Right from the beginning of the tournament, Chennai was looking susceptible in the bowling department but all that changed with the arrival of Doug Bollinger. Ever since he joined the squad, midway through the tournament, Chennai has looked a completely different side altogether. And add to that the charisma of Captain Marvel, MS Dhoni, and the raw power of batsmen like Suresh Raina, Murali Vijay and Matthew Hayden and what you get is a team that now looks poised to lift the title of champions of Indian Premier League season 3.

Defending a modest total of 142, Chennai put up an inspired performance in the field, with Doug Bollinger leading the rout with figures of 4-13 off 4 overs. Deccan had earlier put up a sharp bowling performance but it all went in vain as they were bowled out for just 104 in 19.2 overs.

Chennai started the defence of 142 brilliantly, with the Aussie pacer, along with young spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who has been Chennai’s find of the season, giving away a mere 30 runs in the first six overs, with the danger man Adam Gilchrist (15 off 20) back in the hut. After such a slow start, the chase was always going to be steep and Chennai didn’t give the Chargers any chance of making a comeback.

Deccan, who had won five games on the trot coming into the semis, kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Tirumalsetti Suman (4), Rohit Sharma (2), who once again disappointed, getting out to a pathetic shot, and Herschelle Gibbs (18) fell in quick succession and Deccan was tottering at 48-4 in the 11^th over.

Andrew Symonds (23 off 22) was the only man who could have pulled Deccan out of the hole, with the asking-rate around 12 in the final five overs. And the burly all-rounder did try his best, smashing Shadab Jakati for 17 runs in 15th over to rekindle some hope of a Deccan fightback. But he holed out in the deep to Ashwin in the very next over and that was pretty much game-set and match for Chennai. Chennai didn’t allow any miracles from there on in and completed a convincing 38-run victory to move into the finals of the tournament.

Earlier, it was Subramanium Badrinath’s gritty 37 off 41 balls and Anirudha Srikkanth’s late flourish that helped Chennai post a competitive 142-7 on a tricky pitch.

Matthew Hayden couldn’t make use of the two lives that he got in the middle. Deccan kept on grassing sitters as two dollies were dropped within a space of ten balls before Symonds pouched one to send back his former Australia team mate for 8.

Murali Vijay then put his foot on the accelerator by smashing a six and a boundary and just when he was looking dangerous, Ryan Harris got the better of him for 15. Harris got Deccan off to a perfect start, giving away only eight runs in his first two overs that yielded the Chennai openers.

The in-form Suresh Raina too fell cheaply for once as Chennai were staring down the barrel at 29-3 in five overs. Subramanium Badrinath and skipper MS Dhoni (30 off 32) then put together a patient 52-run stand to resurrect the Chennai innings. But just when the Super Kings looked to up the tempo, Harmeet Singh sent Dhoni back.

Albie Morkel couldn’t do much, only managing one boundary in his run-a-ball four. Srikkanth, however, bludgeoned two sixes in the final two overs to lift the Super Kings to a total that, in the end, proved to be more than enough to set their clash up with the Mumbai team.

The Chargers will now return to the same DY Patil Stadium on Saturday where they take on Royal Challengers Bangalore for the third place playoff, which will decide which one of them would join Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings in the Champions League Twenty20 later this year.

MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings, meanwhile, will not take on Sachin Tendulkar’s Mumbai Indians to determine the champions of Indian Premier League season 3.

Match Summary:

Chennai Super Kings 142 for 7 (Badrinath 37, Harris 3-29) beat Deccan Chargers 104 (Symonds 23, Bollinger 4-13) by 38 runs

Man of the Match: Doug Bollinger

Sehwag has remained at the top with 863 points, followed by South African batsman Hashim Amla at the second spot with 842 points and Sri Lankan batsman Mahela Jayawardena at third spot with 836 points.

Australian vice-captain Michael Clarke, who made a remarkable comeback to the Australian test side scoring a century in his very first innings and had Sehwag firmly within his sights before the start of the second and final Test against New Zealand in Hamilton, as just 16 ratings points separated the two batsmen, has dropped to fifth position after his contributions of 28 and 63.

Clarke’s drop has helped Amla shift to the second place with an opportunity to snatch the number-one position from Sehwag when he faces West Indies in the three-Test series, which starts in Kingston on June 10.

In test bowler’s rankings, Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson has bounced back strongly after a disappointing first Test in Wellington to climb three places and regain second position, which he had first achieved last year in March against South Africa. The left-arm fast bowler, who took 10 wickets in Hamilton, had dropped two places to fifth position after managing just one wicket in the first Test.

Johnson’s left-arm opening bowling partner, Doug Bollinger, also continued his surge upwards has achieved a career-best 15th position after climbing four places following his figures of 3-57 and 2-87 in the second test against New Zealand.

Middle order batsman Michael Hussey and left-arm paceman Doug Bollinger, who has replaced the injured Jacob Oram, will join the Super Kings team on April 3 following the conclusion of Australia’s ongoing tour of New Zealand.

IPL CEO Sundar Raman confirmed on his Twitter page that Bollinger had indeed replaced Oram for the season, while Hussey has been a member of the Chennai side since the first season.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan Royals has also roped in Australian Aaron Finch, who joins the side after injuries to Graeme Smith and Dmitri Mascarenhas. Rajasthan has already sent back former Australian batsman Damien Martyn.

Hussey, who had overtaken Dhoni for the top spot briefly, following the recent series against Pakistan, scored 23 in the fourth ODI and didn’t play in the fifth and final match of the series and has thus dropped below Dhoni, who is currently playing in the three-ODI series against South Africa.

Hussey’s captain Ricky Ponting, meanwhile, has gained four places in the latest rankings and moved back into the top five, sitting now in fourth spot, just behind South Africa’s AB de Villiers.

In the bowler rankings, the main mover is Australia’s Doug Bollinger, who has gained no fewer than 25 places and has broken into the top 20 for the first time in his career.

The 28-year-old New South Welshman took 11 wickets in the five-ODI series at an impressive average of 11.36 and an economy-rate of just 3.90 runs per over to help his team to a 5-0 clean sweep. He now sits in 18th position in the latest rankings, not far behind Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis.

Chasing a difficult target of 325 to win, West Indies were bowled out for just 199 in 36.5 overs, once again failing to bat out their quota of 50 overs. Left arm speedster Doug Bollinger was the pick of the Aussie bowlers with figures of 3-33 while fellow speedster Ryan Harris and off-spinner Steven Smith picked up two wickets each.

The visitors were never in the chase after losing Travis Dowlin on the second ball of their innings. Skipper Chris Gayle also fell soon, for just 14 runs. After that, the wickets fell like nine pins and soon the Windies found themselves tottering at 135 for 8.

As has been the case throughout the series, the visitors’ only true resistance came in the form of Kieron Pollard (45) but that wasn’t good enough to take them anywhere near the Australian total. Fast bowler Darren Sammy provided some entertainment to the crowd, scoring a quick-fire 47 off just 41 balls, but wickets kept tumbling at the other end.

Earlier, an unbeaten 57 off just 26 balls by James Hopes and solid half centuries by Shane Watson and Ricky Ponting lifted Australia to a commanding 324 for five.

The 125-run triumph maintained Australia’s chances of going through the summer undefeated in all forms of the game, with just two Twenty20s against West Indies to be played. They have already equalled their effort of 2000-01, the only other home season when they did not lose a Test or ODI. Back then, the team boasted Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Adam Gilchrist and Mark Waugh, and faced West Indies and Zimbabwe.

Match Summary:

Australia 5 for 324 (Ponting 61, Hopes 57*, Watson 51) beat West Indies 199 (Sammy 47, Bollinger 3-33) by 125 runs

Man of the Match: James Hopes

Man of the Series: Ricky Ponting

West Indies skipper Chris Gayle won the toss and to everyone’s surprise, opted to ball first on what seemed like a perfectly good batting wicket. The decision backfired for the tourists as Ponting (106 off 112 balls) notched up his 29^th ODI hundred to help Australia post a mammoth 324 for 7 and ensure that they remain unbeaten this summer.

Ponting smashed six fours and two sixes in a dominant display, and put on 131 for the third wicket with Cameron White, who scored 63 off 78 balls.

A late assault by James Hopes (42 off 21 balls) and Mike Hussey (23 off 17) ensured Australia surpassed the 300-mark.

Chasing an imposing target of 325, the tourists’ run chase finished well short on 274-8 despite half-centuries from Narsingh Deonarine (53), Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Smith. Pollard top-scored for the West Indies with 62 off 55 balls and, along with Dwayne Smith (58 not out), combined for a 102-run partnership but it wasn’t enough as the tourists fell short by 50-runs.

Australian fast bowlers Doug Bollinger and Ryan Harris took two wickets each, with Bollinger dismissing Gayle yet again.

The third game of the series was abandoned due to rain, and one left to be played is in Melbourne on February 19.

Match Summary:

Australia 7 for 324 (Ponting 106, White 63) beat West Indies 8 for 274 (Deonarine 53, Pollard 62, Smith 58*) by 50 runs

Man of the Match: Ricky Ponting

Gayle has been dismissed four times by Doug Bollinger this season. In fact, Gayle quipped before West Indies’ second test against Australia in December, he didn’t even know who Bollinger is but he has learned quickly and is still trying to figure out a way of dealing with him.

Bollinger dismissed Gayle for the fourth time this season when the West Indian skipper was lbw first ball in Adelaide on Tuesday as Australia raced to a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

“He has my measure, definitely,” Gayle said in the Advertiser. “There is no doubt about that.”

But being the competitor he is, Gayle is looking forward to his next contest with Bollinger at the SCG in the third match on Friday. “These things are good for the game,” he said. “Hopefully we can get a good start in Sydney and we don’t expose our middle order again.”

The Australians have not let Gayle get away in this series so far, cramping the left-hander for room and the move has been successful, with the batsman scoring seven runs in the opening two fixtures. Bollinger’s plan in Adelaide revolved around bowling as straight as possible. “It was great to get Chris Gayle again,” Bollinger said. “If he wants to be my bunny he can. I’ll be happy to get him again.”

West Indies, who are now 2-0 down in the five-match series, will need to play out of their skins if they are to overcome the Australians in any of the final three matches but the way they have been outplayed and outclassed in the first two games, the chances of a West Indies fightback look bleak. Gayle, however, begged to differ.

“We can still win 3-2,” Gayle said. “If we can get to 2-1, we can get things happening for us. We need to make it more interesting so you can get some more ticket sales.”

Chasing 268 to win, Pakistan were bowled out for 127 — their lowest one-day total against Australia in Australia. Skipper Mohammad Yousuf was the only batsman to show some resistance, scoring a gritty 58 in an otherwise dismal display of batting by the tourists.

Earlier, in-form batsmen Shane Watson (69 off 71 balls) and Cameron White (55 off 58 balls) guided Australia to 267-6 in 50 overs after Pakistan elected to field.

In reply, Pakistan never really got going with Doug Bollinger (2-17 off eight overs) piercing through the top order. He removed Salman Butt and (2) and Younis Khan (zero) in the space of four balls in the fifth over.

Bollinger’s Victorian teammate Clint McKay then produced a fine piece of fielding to run out Kamran Akmal (16) following a mix-up with Yousuf.

When Shahid Afridi (9) fell caught and bowled off the bowling of Watson, the scorecard read 6-58 and the contest had all but ended.

The two teams will now meet on Australia Day in Adelaide.

Match Summary:

Australia 6 for 267 (Watson 69, White 55, Aamer 3-53) beat Pakistan 127 (Yousuf 58, McKay 3-15) by 140 runs

Man of the Match: Shane Watson