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Brian Lara at it again.......
- Thread starter manutd4eva
- Start date
PaPaGeorGeo
Fan Favourite
Originally posted by manutd4eva
I can never dispute Bradman's greatness, no one can. An average of 99.94 is just mind boggling.
But the reason I say Lara is better is because of the top quality bowlers Lara has had to face up to and along with the continuos pressure of having to be the leading batsman in a declining team over the last 12 years.
If he is not better then he is certainly right alongside him. He is now certainly better than Tendlukar, Sir Viv and Sir Gary.
But then again comparing batsmen from different eras is not usually a good idea.....or maybe I'm just biased.
The greatest batsman of the last 50 years no doubt though.
AHAHAHAHAHA better bowlers now days thats crap no offense but the bowlers these days arent that great. Bradman played in the era when they didnt have all this protective gear. And pitches were made evenly not just to suit the batsman.
Lara is no doubt a world class player but he is not in Bradmans class nobody is
manutd4eva
Fan Favourite
Yea, that was a typo.
manutd4eva
Fan Favourite
Originally posted by manutd4eva
maybe I'm just biased.
Originally posted by manutd4eva
maybe I'm just biased.
Rob has already beat me to say basically all I wanted to say.
i) that Lara has played in the era of professionalism so yeah maybe the bowlers are better, but that batsmen have the opportunity to be better too dont they? Protective gear, technology used in training, video tapes to study etc etc.
ii) Bodyline, 'nough said
iii) Lara is the most talented of the modern era, ahead of Tendulkar, however his mind isnt as good as Tendulkars, and his wasnt as good as Steve Waughs.
Finally, I hope this match ends in a draw.
Remember: Mark Taylor on 334* at the end of play on the 2nd day against Paksitan (in Pakistan, much harder conditions than India on a flat track in the West Indies), as captain, he declared the innings closed, and chased the win for the team...
Lara 313*, was too greedy, couldnt see past himself, and went for the record, not worrying too much about the team...I maen he was still 70 odd runs away from the record at the start of play, and 90odd from the 400 he wanted. Taylor was only 40 away from the record at the time....
I think this is the difference between the West Indies side (esp. Lara), and the Australian side (and the West Indies of the past for that matter)...Aust. always chase the win.
i) that Lara has played in the era of professionalism so yeah maybe the bowlers are better, but that batsmen have the opportunity to be better too dont they? Protective gear, technology used in training, video tapes to study etc etc.
ii) Bodyline, 'nough said
iii) Lara is the most talented of the modern era, ahead of Tendulkar, however his mind isnt as good as Tendulkars, and his wasnt as good as Steve Waughs.
Finally, I hope this match ends in a draw.
Remember: Mark Taylor on 334* at the end of play on the 2nd day against Paksitan (in Pakistan, much harder conditions than India on a flat track in the West Indies
), as captain, he declared the innings closed, and chased the win for the team...Lara 313*, was too greedy, couldnt see past himself, and went for the record, not worrying too much about the team...I maen he was still 70 odd runs away from the record at the start of play, and 90odd from the 400 he wanted. Taylor was only 40 away from the record at the time....
I think this is the difference between the West Indies side (esp. Lara), and the Australian side (and the West Indies of the past for that matter)...Aust. always chase the win.
manutd4eva
Fan Favourite
Originally posted by Alex
Remember: Mark Taylor on 334* at the end of play on the 2nd day against Paksitan (in Pakistan, much harder conditions than India on a flat track in the West Indies
Lara 313*, was too greedy, couldnt see past himself, and went for the record, not worrying too much about the team...I maen he was still 70 odd runs away from the record at the start of play, and 90odd from the 400 he wanted. Taylor was only 40 away from the record at the time....
I think this is the difference between the West Indies side (esp. Lara), and the Australian side (and the West Indies of the past for that matter)...Aust. always chase the win.
Winning this test match would've done nothing for us. Last year after we did that record run chase against your lot there was talk everywhere that the West Indies have finally "turned the corner", which was just bullshit. We then beat a pretty poor Sri Lankan team after that 1-0 in a two test match series and there was more bullshit talk that we are now on the back to the top. Lara continued as captain.....
After that we went to South Africa and were brought down back to earth after going down 3-0 in the 4 test series. We drew the final test match which was supposed to be a feather in the cap for the team going in to the one-dayers. We were humilated in the one dayers. Lara again continued as captain......
Coming into this series we should've beaten England, a team that hadn't won a series in the West Indies for 36 years. We played poorly in all the matches except the last one. Poor captaincy, poor batting, and at times poor bowling. We lost the series, being bowled out for under a 100 twice in the same series which has never hapenned to us before.
We came into this last test match trying to avoid a whitewash (same as last year againt your lot and against the South Africans earlier this year). We have never been whitewashed in the Caribbean. Lara regaining the record has lifted the spirits of the Caribbean people more than a meaningless win in this final match would've done.
When Hayden broke the record last year there were people in the Caribbean that cried. It was the one thing we had to boast obout over the last ten years when our cricket as hit an all time low. When we lost the series a couple a weeks ago there were people who couldn't go to work or school. That's how much cricket means to Caribbean people. A win in this match would not have helped our situation, because once again there would be talk of us turning that corner - again. People would've for forgotten the events of the last couple of months, which for me have been the most embarassing in my time as a West Indies supporter (all my life).
I dont know if you understand what I'm saying or not, but if you dont, you would have to be a West Indian to see the difference in what winning the last test against Australia last year and Lara reclaiming the record means to West Indian people. We now have somethign to fall back on, it might sound like crap but well that's what our cricket is at the moment.
And there was never gonna be a result in this match based on the pitch. And when you said Taylor made his triple in more difficult conditions means that it wasn't the best batting pitch so a chance of a result was always there unlike this match.
Essendon BFC
Senior Squad
Great batsman.
Not as good as Bradman. Well in my opinion anyway. I think it was much harder to bat in bradmans era then now.
I thought it was pretty greedy though.
Not as good as Bradman. Well in my opinion anyway. I think it was much harder to bat in bradmans era then now.
I thought it was pretty greedy though.
Well the people of the carribean should think...
What would Taylor have scored, if he jsut chased the record, what would Hayden have scored, if he didnt just start slogging aimlessly once he made the 375...Steve Waugh had given him a time limit, so he didnt hang around...
Maybe carribean cricket is in the state it is, because of this mind set? That an individual record comes before any team win.
Losing 3-0 to England, in the carribean is a terribile result, atleast 3-1 would salvage some pride, not to mention help matters a little on the ICC World Championship board...
You need to have a look at the state your cricket is in, and the state our cricket is in, and the values that both sides take.
manutd4eva
Fan Favourite
Not sure if you'll understand this or not but, this is what it means to us. As I said before you would have to be a West Indian to understand what that record means to us and what wining this test match would've meant. I just have a personal feeling that getting back that record has signalled the beginning of a new era in West Indies cricket more than winning this match would've done.
"Nostalgia No. 160 - Lara's Easter to Remember -by Godfrey Chin - [email protected]
EEEEEYoooow" I shouted..A Roar to match M-G-M's Trademark Lion - The she-ape howl of Johnny Weismuller's Tarzan - & more recently - Howard Dean's political Hari-Kari.
Believe it or not - A concerned neighbour called 911 to report a 'murder' unaware the homocide was 'not me' - but 11 victims clad in 'white' in Antigua - suntanned & buck-sick -
Two Squad Cars - Sirens with flashing lights - and the next fifteen minutes - my embarassed explanation of what is 'Cricket' to Local Law Officers - distracting my rapture to keep abreast with 'teletyped ball-by-ball coverage on this Gates Contraption! Ya think it easy! My 'John Arlott' explanation of 'Cricket' avoided a 'ticket for 'Disturbing the Peace.....
Can you imagine the credulousness of six of Ashcroft's uniformed Proudest - listening to this Habib Khan .... explaining 'What is a Gully - Fine/Long/Short Leg - Slip - Cover - Bumper - Leg Byes - Wides -
I stopped at No-Balls ...........lest I offended, & 'handcuff appears
My cry of Exultation - of Redemption must have been heard above the din at the Antigua Stadium - echoing in every Caribbean heart - swelling with pride like the Blue Caribbean Seas, that unite us as a Cricket Family ... temporarily 'marooned!!
Yes 'lightning strikes twice' - This occasion - another 'resurection - 2000 years later - High Noon on Easter Mon - 4 Years in the New Milennium - 'A Chorus of Alleluia for the 'Prince has Risen'.
Trumpets blare - Conch shells screech - Steel pans clang - -Juke Box jams - the volcano on Monsterrat rumbles - each a timpani - the clarion call for the re-awakening of West Indian Cricket. at this 'historic moment'
NB - Wasn't Gary Cooper the Sheriff - standing ALONE against the Opposition in the classic Stanley Kramer's Academy Award Western - High Noon. Even that film's theme song by Dimitri Tiomkin is now relevant....."Do not forsake me, Oh my darling!....Come in Tex Ritter or Frankie Laine - depending which version you liked!
The previous incessant chants of the sun-tanning Barmy English - 'from Rule Brittania' to 'There will always be an England' are hushed & muted & replaced by 'Lara's Theme' from the 'homesters minority!
How Appropriate - Timely - this haunting theme by Michael Jarre from Dr Zhivago did for SNOW what his Lawrence of Arabia theme did for SAND - Lara's Theme now must be our symphony - An Ode to the World ' proclaiming - that the West Indies are ready to 'shock & awe' again!
My white-fowl 'obeah superstition even recall's Max Steiner's Tara's Theme from the 1939 classic Gone with the Wind!
Hell - If you believe in Fairmaid - Ol Higue - Baccoo............. 1939 was the last year Our Cricketing Nation was second class. By 1947/48 - after WWII, we emerged as a world cricket power, beating Gubby Allen's MCC squad at home - and reigned supreme ever since-................ Except of course ...for the temporary' Trials & Tribulations = Shame & Scandal - these last fifteen years as we replenish the ' flock!
A local Press headlines ' OOPS - Lara breaks World record AGAIN' - So matter-of-fact ' that I take offence, when our own local press fails to appreciate & extol the 'enormity of Lara's innings'
No Gladiator [ not even Russel Crowe or Spartacus Kirk Douglas] in the History of Sport since the first 'Greek Games - to the first Athens Olympics 1896 - to this Easter 2004 - must have been 'villified - endured ridicule - bad talk - suck teeth - umbrage - eye-pass from Sports Critics everywhere & the Native Posses - headhunters - lynch-mobs - armed with rope - knife - pailing staves - tar - feathers - stone - seeking 'decapitation'
But 'Kettle' ...turns up the 'heat' this Easter Monday & flies 'high & wide - red hot till the opposition 'black & blue!
This Lara story can make a movie to surpass Jamaica's Bob sled Team 'Cool Runnings! I must contact Disney Touchstone with Screenplay!
At 24. the Prince breaks the record of his countryman Garfield Sobers
- Highest Test Score 364.
At 34, he regains the crown less than 6 months, after it was usurped from him.
His batting - Authoritative - Masterful - this Easter Monday matched any Champion's performance in the History of Cricket, including the Don himself & the 'Comebacks' of Legendary 'boxing heroes'
Cricket to the West Indies is 'koranic' - our cathecism - our zeal - fervour - life blood - Our Celebration of his 400 - must be heralded in our Song -Dance, Music Carnivals - ethnic food - OL talk.
The Electric Slide - Macarama - & Cha-Cha Slide must now be replaced by 'the Lara Shine!
We celebrated in song with the Calypso 'Cricket Lovely Cricket' in 1950 at our ascendancy to the champion's Podium of Cricket at LORDS. I await the next soca -reggae - dancehall hit to commemorate the achievement. Come in David Martin!
Hi-Fives till palms hurt - Hands clapping together . Throats boisterously sore - Endless Toasts of Banks - Red Stripe - Carib - XM - Old Oak - Mount Gay - Falernum - Bucaneer Rum - Better let's declare a Caribbean Public Holiday!
Wow - 5 days no work from Good Friday to Easter Tuesday! No problem - the Pepperpot will last - kinda meatless by then! I will just bake an extra pan of Cassava Pone!
Laramania - will now infect every 'male' seeking to be a 'PLAYER' & will be the 'peer pressure of every Caribbean Youth as 'hazing is to the American Freshman Let's hope our youths seek to be 'CRICKET PLAYERS' instead, & emulate the achievements oF the Prince - restoring the blazing glory of our cricket again!
For starters - The itinerary of First & Lasts Tests at Home must be 'scheduled at the St John's Antigua Stadium!
Thanks to all those who shared 'how they spent their Easter!
Live & Learn - There was 'Kite Flying in China long before the First Easter!
Am now convinced my parents fooled me 'about Father Christmas - Tooth Fairy - All Saints Day - Palm Fly in the house - Left eye jumping - right palm itching! "
"Nostalgia No. 160 - Lara's Easter to Remember -by Godfrey Chin - [email protected]
EEEEEYoooow" I shouted..A Roar to match M-G-M's Trademark Lion - The she-ape howl of Johnny Weismuller's Tarzan - & more recently - Howard Dean's political Hari-Kari.
Believe it or not - A concerned neighbour called 911 to report a 'murder' unaware the homocide was 'not me' - but 11 victims clad in 'white' in Antigua - suntanned & buck-sick -
Two Squad Cars - Sirens with flashing lights - and the next fifteen minutes - my embarassed explanation of what is 'Cricket' to Local Law Officers - distracting my rapture to keep abreast with 'teletyped ball-by-ball coverage on this Gates Contraption! Ya think it easy! My 'John Arlott' explanation of 'Cricket' avoided a 'ticket for 'Disturbing the Peace.....
Can you imagine the credulousness of six of Ashcroft's uniformed Proudest - listening to this Habib Khan .... explaining 'What is a Gully - Fine/Long/Short Leg - Slip - Cover - Bumper - Leg Byes - Wides -
I stopped at No-Balls ...........lest I offended, & 'handcuff appears
My cry of Exultation - of Redemption must have been heard above the din at the Antigua Stadium - echoing in every Caribbean heart - swelling with pride like the Blue Caribbean Seas, that unite us as a Cricket Family ... temporarily 'marooned!!
Yes 'lightning strikes twice' - This occasion - another 'resurection - 2000 years later - High Noon on Easter Mon - 4 Years in the New Milennium - 'A Chorus of Alleluia for the 'Prince has Risen'.
Trumpets blare - Conch shells screech - Steel pans clang - -Juke Box jams - the volcano on Monsterrat rumbles - each a timpani - the clarion call for the re-awakening of West Indian Cricket. at this 'historic moment'
NB - Wasn't Gary Cooper the Sheriff - standing ALONE against the Opposition in the classic Stanley Kramer's Academy Award Western - High Noon. Even that film's theme song by Dimitri Tiomkin is now relevant....."Do not forsake me, Oh my darling!....Come in Tex Ritter or Frankie Laine - depending which version you liked!
The previous incessant chants of the sun-tanning Barmy English - 'from Rule Brittania' to 'There will always be an England' are hushed & muted & replaced by 'Lara's Theme' from the 'homesters minority!
How Appropriate - Timely - this haunting theme by Michael Jarre from Dr Zhivago did for SNOW what his Lawrence of Arabia theme did for SAND - Lara's Theme now must be our symphony - An Ode to the World ' proclaiming - that the West Indies are ready to 'shock & awe' again!
My white-fowl 'obeah superstition even recall's Max Steiner's Tara's Theme from the 1939 classic Gone with the Wind!
Hell - If you believe in Fairmaid - Ol Higue - Baccoo............. 1939 was the last year Our Cricketing Nation was second class. By 1947/48 - after WWII, we emerged as a world cricket power, beating Gubby Allen's MCC squad at home - and reigned supreme ever since-................ Except of course ...for the temporary' Trials & Tribulations = Shame & Scandal - these last fifteen years as we replenish the ' flock!
A local Press headlines ' OOPS - Lara breaks World record AGAIN' - So matter-of-fact ' that I take offence, when our own local press fails to appreciate & extol the 'enormity of Lara's innings'
No Gladiator [ not even Russel Crowe or Spartacus Kirk Douglas] in the History of Sport since the first 'Greek Games - to the first Athens Olympics 1896 - to this Easter 2004 - must have been 'villified - endured ridicule - bad talk - suck teeth - umbrage - eye-pass from Sports Critics everywhere & the Native Posses - headhunters - lynch-mobs - armed with rope - knife - pailing staves - tar - feathers - stone - seeking 'decapitation'
But 'Kettle' ...turns up the 'heat' this Easter Monday & flies 'high & wide - red hot till the opposition 'black & blue!
This Lara story can make a movie to surpass Jamaica's Bob sled Team 'Cool Runnings! I must contact Disney Touchstone with Screenplay!
At 24. the Prince breaks the record of his countryman Garfield Sobers
- Highest Test Score 364.
At 34, he regains the crown less than 6 months, after it was usurped from him.
His batting - Authoritative - Masterful - this Easter Monday matched any Champion's performance in the History of Cricket, including the Don himself & the 'Comebacks' of Legendary 'boxing heroes'
Cricket to the West Indies is 'koranic' - our cathecism - our zeal - fervour - life blood - Our Celebration of his 400 - must be heralded in our Song -Dance, Music Carnivals - ethnic food - OL talk.
The Electric Slide - Macarama - & Cha-Cha Slide must now be replaced by 'the Lara Shine!
We celebrated in song with the Calypso 'Cricket Lovely Cricket' in 1950 at our ascendancy to the champion's Podium of Cricket at LORDS. I await the next soca -reggae - dancehall hit to commemorate the achievement. Come in David Martin!
Hi-Fives till palms hurt - Hands clapping together . Throats boisterously sore - Endless Toasts of Banks - Red Stripe - Carib - XM - Old Oak - Mount Gay - Falernum - Bucaneer Rum - Better let's declare a Caribbean Public Holiday!
Wow - 5 days no work from Good Friday to Easter Tuesday! No problem - the Pepperpot will last - kinda meatless by then! I will just bake an extra pan of Cassava Pone!
Laramania - will now infect every 'male' seeking to be a 'PLAYER' & will be the 'peer pressure of every Caribbean Youth as 'hazing is to the American Freshman Let's hope our youths seek to be 'CRICKET PLAYERS' instead, & emulate the achievements oF the Prince - restoring the blazing glory of our cricket again!
For starters - The itinerary of First & Lasts Tests at Home must be 'scheduled at the St John's Antigua Stadium!
Thanks to all those who shared 'how they spent their Easter!
Live & Learn - There was 'Kite Flying in China long before the First Easter!
Am now convinced my parents fooled me 'about Father Christmas - Tooth Fairy - All Saints Day - Palm Fly in the house - Left eye jumping - right palm itching! "
manutd4eva
Fan Favourite
Another article with better grammar this time.
http://caribbeancricket.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1379&mode=&order=0&thold=0
A Living Legend
Thursday, April 15 @ 12:13:00 EDT
by LAURA EVANS
West Indian people the world over, and indeed cricket fans from other nations, still might not have come down from the high of the superb and chanceless innings that was completed at the Antigua Recreation Ground on Monday April 12, 2004.
The superlatives flowed from millions of mouths across the globe, though still failing to fully capture the wonder of what they had witnessed. Because surely, there can never be enough words in any dictionary to describe the feelings that were experienced or the enormity of what had occurred.
Even that man, the one with the willpower and nerves of titanium, might still not yet be able to come to grips with what he had done, what he had given to us. Days after he had turned the cricket world upside down, all he can feel right now is "tired". As well he should, because he managed to squeeze four centuries into less than three days. He went into battle on Saturday, and on Monday he was still undefeated. Just 7 minutes short of 13 hours he had blazed away, until he mercifully decided that he had punished the disbelievers long enough.
How fitting it is that this feat was accomplished on Easter Monday? Surely, no one can deny that this is a chosen one, and he who is blessed by a higher power, no mortal man can ever curse. With a ruthless and fearless six followed by a deft sweep for four, Brian Charles Lara once again scaled the highest heights of cricket supremacy. And we all scaled it with him, because it was for us as much at it was for him.
The Lord doesn't give us more than we can bear, and over the past few weeks West Indian people have been in pain and depression. We needed something special to give us some hope, some reason to believe, and who else to do this but the one that had done it several times before, our prince Brian Charles? Because of him we all were able to laugh, to cry, to scream in abandon when the joy was just too much to hold in. It is just amazing how life can unfold and how our faith and belief can be tested to the extreme.
Many of us had given up hope, and understandably so, because the events leading up to this one would make even the staunchest supporter abandon ship. Even the great one himself had succumbed briefly to the weakness of self-doubt. But he prayed for guidance and strength, and quickly remembered his purpose. Those that loved and supported him unconditionally assured him that the sky is darkest before dawn breaks through. But there were the Judases, ready to hand him over for slaughter. The vultures were slowly circling, hoping and waiting for some fodder.
But it was not to be. They would all have to wait a little longer, or better yet, die of starvation. The naysayers would have to swallow their pride mixed with the bitter taste of bile and stand up to applaud. They were humbled yet again by the indomitable spirit of this man, because even as they were saying, "ashes to ashes" he was singing, "no grave can hold my body down!" He is the epitome of The Phoenix, because surely he has risen from the very depths of despair before, and now he has soared to a peak never before reached.
It is said that success is seventy-five percent inspiration and twenty-five percent perspiration. There is no doubt that this is the case in cricket, because mental strength must be paramount even over physical. Of course you need to have endurance to pull off such a Herculean task, but strength of will is what will help you to overcome. We need to stop and ponder for a minute about the power of the mind and will that can push a body to achieve this feat all of ten years after he had done it before, and to do this with no less than the impediment of a broken finger.
This man could not be ordinary, and he never will be. If he cannot be described as great then that word needs to be banished from the vocabulary. There is immense significance in the fact that before this, only one batsman in the history of cricket had crossed the 300-mark more than once.
Many are called but few are chosen, and of all the legends that have come and gone not one was able to equal this achievement. Brian Lara not only equaled this, but went one step further, and now every record book and every statistics table will have to make a column for quadruple centuries, even though there is just this single one to date. Yes, he is in a class all by himself, and rightly so because he is incomparable and unparalleled.
When he made 400 not out, Brian Charles Lara breathed new life into tired, weary West Indies fans. On that day all of us were once again proud to be West Indian, because one of our very own had showed the world what great things we are capable of. What he did for the bruised and tortured souls can never be measured. He was fighting for our very survival, saving us from totally going under.
Monday, April 12, 2004 will certainly go down in West Indian folklore, the same way that Monday, April 18, 1994 did, and the hero of the stories will remain the same. How many people get the chance to relive a dream such as this? The chosen one has been given this opportunity to travel the same path twice; only this time he is ten years older and wiser, with battle scars instead of youthful exuberance.
He will no doubt be more aware and able to appreciate the simple fact that he is blessed, just as we must appreciate that we have in our midst a living legend.
http://caribbeancricket.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1379&mode=&order=0&thold=0
A Living Legend
Thursday, April 15 @ 12:13:00 EDT
by LAURA EVANS
West Indian people the world over, and indeed cricket fans from other nations, still might not have come down from the high of the superb and chanceless innings that was completed at the Antigua Recreation Ground on Monday April 12, 2004.
The superlatives flowed from millions of mouths across the globe, though still failing to fully capture the wonder of what they had witnessed. Because surely, there can never be enough words in any dictionary to describe the feelings that were experienced or the enormity of what had occurred.
Even that man, the one with the willpower and nerves of titanium, might still not yet be able to come to grips with what he had done, what he had given to us. Days after he had turned the cricket world upside down, all he can feel right now is "tired". As well he should, because he managed to squeeze four centuries into less than three days. He went into battle on Saturday, and on Monday he was still undefeated. Just 7 minutes short of 13 hours he had blazed away, until he mercifully decided that he had punished the disbelievers long enough.
How fitting it is that this feat was accomplished on Easter Monday? Surely, no one can deny that this is a chosen one, and he who is blessed by a higher power, no mortal man can ever curse. With a ruthless and fearless six followed by a deft sweep for four, Brian Charles Lara once again scaled the highest heights of cricket supremacy. And we all scaled it with him, because it was for us as much at it was for him.
The Lord doesn't give us more than we can bear, and over the past few weeks West Indian people have been in pain and depression. We needed something special to give us some hope, some reason to believe, and who else to do this but the one that had done it several times before, our prince Brian Charles? Because of him we all were able to laugh, to cry, to scream in abandon when the joy was just too much to hold in. It is just amazing how life can unfold and how our faith and belief can be tested to the extreme.
Many of us had given up hope, and understandably so, because the events leading up to this one would make even the staunchest supporter abandon ship. Even the great one himself had succumbed briefly to the weakness of self-doubt. But he prayed for guidance and strength, and quickly remembered his purpose. Those that loved and supported him unconditionally assured him that the sky is darkest before dawn breaks through. But there were the Judases, ready to hand him over for slaughter. The vultures were slowly circling, hoping and waiting for some fodder.
But it was not to be. They would all have to wait a little longer, or better yet, die of starvation. The naysayers would have to swallow their pride mixed with the bitter taste of bile and stand up to applaud. They were humbled yet again by the indomitable spirit of this man, because even as they were saying, "ashes to ashes" he was singing, "no grave can hold my body down!" He is the epitome of The Phoenix, because surely he has risen from the very depths of despair before, and now he has soared to a peak never before reached.
It is said that success is seventy-five percent inspiration and twenty-five percent perspiration. There is no doubt that this is the case in cricket, because mental strength must be paramount even over physical. Of course you need to have endurance to pull off such a Herculean task, but strength of will is what will help you to overcome. We need to stop and ponder for a minute about the power of the mind and will that can push a body to achieve this feat all of ten years after he had done it before, and to do this with no less than the impediment of a broken finger.
This man could not be ordinary, and he never will be. If he cannot be described as great then that word needs to be banished from the vocabulary. There is immense significance in the fact that before this, only one batsman in the history of cricket had crossed the 300-mark more than once.
Many are called but few are chosen, and of all the legends that have come and gone not one was able to equal this achievement. Brian Lara not only equaled this, but went one step further, and now every record book and every statistics table will have to make a column for quadruple centuries, even though there is just this single one to date. Yes, he is in a class all by himself, and rightly so because he is incomparable and unparalleled.
When he made 400 not out, Brian Charles Lara breathed new life into tired, weary West Indies fans. On that day all of us were once again proud to be West Indian, because one of our very own had showed the world what great things we are capable of. What he did for the bruised and tortured souls can never be measured. He was fighting for our very survival, saving us from totally going under.
Monday, April 12, 2004 will certainly go down in West Indian folklore, the same way that Monday, April 18, 1994 did, and the hero of the stories will remain the same. How many people get the chance to relive a dream such as this? The chosen one has been given this opportunity to travel the same path twice; only this time he is ten years older and wiser, with battle scars instead of youthful exuberance.
He will no doubt be more aware and able to appreciate the simple fact that he is blessed, just as we must appreciate that we have in our midst a living legend.
Spurs4Life
Starting XI
What a legend he is. He held the record for 10 years,lost it, then 6 months later it's like he thought "i aint having that im getting it back" and did, amazing.
Congratulations to Brian Lara, especially considering the score was against England and not Zimbabwe or the like. The series was lost anyway, and 3-1 or 3-0, doesn't change the fact it was a series loss. And having a memory of 400 not-out can be cherished more than a win in a lost series.
Lara has been my favourite batsman ever since I witnessed his 277 against us at the SCG in 1992. The fact that he lost his record to Hayden and then fought back to reclaim it makes him a champion in my opinion.
Haydens innings was a gem against Zimbabwe but the thing that impresses me about this innings from Lara is the fact that England had been tearing through the Windies lineup all series.It would be hard to argue that the pitch was a batsmans paradise because England were all out for 250 odd in reply.
Unfortunately it happens too often that the Windies finally step up in the dead rubber.
Well done to a champion batsman who now has 2 scores over 400 at first class level as well as another test 300.
Haydens innings was a gem against Zimbabwe but the thing that impresses me about this innings from Lara is the fact that England had been tearing through the Windies lineup all series.It would be hard to argue that the pitch was a batsmans paradise because England were all out for 250 odd in reply.
Unfortunately it happens too often that the Windies finally step up in the dead rubber.
Well done to a champion batsman who now has 2 scores over 400 at first class level as well as another test 300.
No, I understood you perfectly, and the point Im trying to make is simple.
Maybe this is why West Indies cricket is so poor. If the fans place the values on individualistic targets such as this, then what is there for the players to chase as a team?
Youve given me a perfect example.
Perhaps if the fans woke up and considered that a team is more important than an individual record, which might have been much higher had others had the same values, then maybe the West Indies would be a better side today.
Australia were always going to win the series against Zimbabwe, yet Hayden didnt hang around to chase the 400...
If the record means more than the result of the team to the West Indies people, then their values are in the wrong place, just as Laras and the players are.
So 3-1 is still a loss? But atleast its something to build on, lifts team morale, and they start the next test series coming off a win.
manutd4eva
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I see your point but,
We didn't build on the win in the final test match against Australia last year and also we didn't build on the series win against Sri Lanka.
This record looks like it will propel our team to better things in the near future and I dont have a problem with that. I have hardly known a dominant West Indies team, so I'm dying to see some sort of improvement in whatever shape or form.
There is a greater buzz around the Caribbean for crciket since Lara recliamed the record. Kids are playing cricket more, there are long lines at ticket outlets for the one day matches. Prince Charles has brought the West Indies back to life.
I'll tell you one thing though, I would be more than happy to have 10 more players with Brian's hunger for "individual records" in the team, we would be somewhere near the top of the test rankings again.
Another thing to add, keeping the Englishmen in the field for as long as possible was our best chance at trying to win that match. It showed when the bowlers were fired up and knocked them over for 285 on probably the flattest pitch I've seen in years. We would've also won if we had taken all our catches. We dropped someting like 8 catches in the two innings.
Brian might lose the record again though, seeing the position Zimbabwe cricket is in at the moment and they play you next
Oh well...........we have Bangladesh after that.