So, there he goes, walking out of international cricket with his head held not as high as he would have wished and surprising everybody with his sheer timing (of the announcement that is).The cricket experts around the world were made to work overtime as Lara announced his retirement from international cricket, catching many by surprise.
The one thing that strikes you about Lara among cricket followers in India is this - I have never come across anyone who does not like him. There are Sachin lovers & Sachin haters, there are Ganguly lovers and Ganguly haters, there are Ponting lovers and Ponting haters but there are no two sides when it comes to Lara. Everyone seems to have a soft corner for him. Every single cricket loving friend of mine with whom I have had endless discussions (read arguments) have always had only good things to say about the man and that I think is something remarkable.
One huge reason for him being so widely popular and loved back in India is that never once did the hugely hyped up Sachin - Lara rivalry really materialize. The Sachin - Warne rivalry is part of folklore of Indian cricket but not the Sachin - Lara one. Plus, the fact that Sachin and Lara have been good friends off the field did not help matters either.
Even being one of the biggest Sachin fanatics that you will ever come across, I have always admired Lara, the batsman. As a person outside the cricketing arena, he was a maverick of some sort and has not always conducted himself in the manner in which his contemporaries, say Sachin has done. But as a batsman, he always provided us the thrills and excitement that only true geniuses can bring. The way he gets himself into position before playing any shot was a treat to the eyes.
Among the many other things I always liked about him is that he never did change his batting style and he continued playing his natural game until the end of his career. That one reason will be cited by many who argue that Lara is better than Sachin. In spite of his team doing abjectly bad, he never stopped playing his natural attacking instinct and that is something I sincerely wish Sachin does too.
He had many similarities with Sachin too: What he faced during the later phase of his career was something that Sachin had to put up with during his best years - mediocrity around him. During the last 5 years, the West Indies have fallen to the bottom of the world rankings in both forms of the game and Lara, both as a batsman and as a captain, has been unable to stop that downward trend. That is why whenever the discussion of how Lara is a better match-winner than Sachin is brought up, I always shoot back "Has he done anything of note ever since the giants Walsh and Ambrose retired? Nope. Nothing. Zilch." That says it all. He played in a mediocre team and the results were expectedly mediocre. He had some great personal scores and series (like the unforgettable one against the Sri Lankans) but the answer to the question did he play any innings that an truly be defined as match-winning would be a big NO.
Couple of my favorite Lara innings:
1) The 1996 quarterfinal against South Africa - Lara single handedly won that match against the Proteas who seemed invincible until they ran into Lara. What an innings it was. This is one of those rare innings that you just can't take it away from your heart.
2) His 153 against the Aussies which I think is what will be remembered as his best innings. It was an epic innings by all means, where he makes 153 of the 311 runs needed for victory and when he guided the West Indies from a point where they were reeling at 105 for the loss of 5 wickets.
When asked how he wished to be remembered as a player, Lara replied that he wanted to be remembered as
someone who entertained. Entertained sure, we were, with his magical timing and swashbuckling brilliance for well over a decade. Brian Lara, you will be missed. Big time.
BTW, today is April 24th and that means only one thing - Sachin's bday. Here's wishing the master a hugely successful year ahead and a year in which Sachin will silence his critics once for all. Sachin, we are all with you and just one bad series is not going to change things for your fans. You are and will always be the best in our books. The Accenture
commercial says, "Go on. Be a Tiger" But we say "Go on. Be a Sachin" bcos there is only one Sachin and that is you. Happy birthday to the little master...
