'All the shots': Aussies reflect on legendary Lara
Lara took to Shane Warne to steer the Windies to a memorable win // GettyĪ plucky century from opener Sherwin Campbell kept the hosts in the hunt on that third day and when Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose took two Australian wickets before stumps, the hosts had a sniff.Īustralia then squandered much of their advantage when they folded for 146 in their second innings, before Lara re-commenced on the final day with his side needing to chase the still-sizeable target of 308 on a wearing track. Given the overwhelming victory margins of the series' first two encounters – 312 runs to Australia in Port of Spain, 10 wickets to West Indies in Kingston – only the few remaining optimistic cricket fans in the Caribbean would have tipped against Waugh's men notching a series-clinching win. He is a spoilt child."Īnd as his counterpart Waugh, the leader of world cricket's resurgent force, batted for eight-and-a-half-hours – with his eventual successor Ricky Ponting at the other end for more than six of them – across the third Test's first two days, Lara could easily have proven Holding right.įrom The Vault: Lara's defiant ton at the SCGĮspecially after he was dismissed for just eight late on day two, before watching his side lose their sixth wicket the following morning having only just reduced their deficit to fewer than 400 runs.Īustralia were ascendant and the Windies were carried by a pair of veteran quicks and batsmen closer to the ends of their careers that the starts. It needs a big man to do it, someone well-rounded as an individual," legendary former quick Michael Holding had said of Lara's appointment.
"Being captain of West Indies is a huge honour and a huge job. Lara was firmly in the media spotlight during the series // Getty
If it was a foregone conclusion that the world's preeminent Test side no longer hailed from the Caribbean after decades of dominance, no one had told Lara.Īfter the Windies were bowled out of 51 in the series opener, many had questioned his suitability to be the side's flagbearer. The West Indies captain's unmatched powers had been on display a week earlier in Jamaica, pasting Australia for his third Test double century to even the Frank Worrall Trophy ledger at 1-1. Lara hammered 19 fours at Kensington Oval // Getty In Barbados, against one of the most dominant Test teams in history, he showed true leadership. Brian Lara reflects on one of the great knocksĪs the great Clive Lloyd put it, "to play as he did today, nursing along players with much less ability, was the hallmark of greatness".Īs a batsman, Lara had already proved his genius over the previous nine years, his 11 Test hundreds to that point including a world record 375 and a stunning 213 just a week earlier.
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