Sydney: Leading paceman Glenn McGrath left here on Monday for the West Indies to rejoin his Australian cricket teammates after his cancer-stricken wife declared she wanted some normality back in her life.

McGrath returned from Australia's Caribbean tour after his wife Jane was diagnosed with secondary cancer in her hip earlier this month.

The diagnosis relates to the breast cancer she fought in 1997, when she endured six months of chemotherapy before being cleared of cancer in June 1998.

It was not originally known when or if McGrath would rejoin the team in the West Indies, with Australia taking a 1-0 lead in the four-Test series.

Australia was in a commanding position midway through the second Port of Spain Test as it attempted to retain the Frank Worrell Trophy.

But McGrath's decision to rejoin the team came after a specialist said his wife's condition was not as bad as first feared.

She would still undergo radiation therapy but was expected to make a full recovery.

McGrath said his wife wanted to get back to a normal routine and that meant her husband playing cricket. "She started treatment last week and that's gone very well," McGrath told reporters shortly before his departure.

"And Jane just wants a bit of normality back in her life and for her, that's me playing cricket."

McGrath will be available for selection for the third Test starting in Bridgetown on May 1.

Copyright AFP 2001

Extras:
'Brad's return not a must when McGrath gets back'
It's great news for McGrath family
Jane diagnosed with hip cancer, Williams in for McGrath
"It's definitely not breast cancer but is linked to it"
McGrath rushed home to be with ailing wife Jane