``My nose felt like a nose again,'' Waugh, 34, said today. Waugh collided with fast bowler Jason Gillespie during the first Test and needed surgery.

``I don't know what the odds are, but I feel a lot better. The nose is certainly a lot better than what it was a couple of days ago,'' said Waugh.

``I want to play in the Test match and captain Australia. I am not going to walk away from it easily if I can't play.''

But physicians attending Waugh want him to rest. ``The advice is not to play, but they always look at the worst scenario,'' Waugh said about the physicians' suggestions.

Waugh must wear a helmet all the time because he cannot risk even a minor impact that may open up the wound. Waugh is vital for the Australians as he has averaged 50 runs in Testcricket.

Vice-captain Shane Warne said Waugh had a better than 50-50 chance of playing the 2nd Test.

The visitors go to the second Test with one injury-free bowler, Damien Fleming. Scott Muller, who replaces Gillespie, had stitches to heal a split in the webbing between his fourth and little fingers on his right hand, sustained when he dropped a return catch during Australia's match against Sri Lankan cricket Board XI in Colombo on Sunday.

Pace spearhead Glenn McGrath, is trying to overcome a left thigh strain but coach Geoff Marsh says the New South Welshman is a likely starter in the Galle Test.

With Gillespie not in the team, a selection quandary looms should McGrath not pass a fitness test as there is simply no other paceman in the 15-man squad.

It could propel leg-spinner Stuart MacGill into the side even though he has not played since the four-day match that preceded the first Test.