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Brian Lara vs Ricky Ponting (against pace bowling)

better player of fast bowling?

  • Total voters
    26
P

pardus

U19 12th Man
Sliferxxxx said:
The irony which just crossed my mind being this. Whatever issues Lara had vs Donald and the 2Ws was limited to tests. In limited overs he made runs vs them while all three were in their prime.
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I don't think Lara ever had issues with W+W bouncing him out in any of the series they played. In fact, neither of them even got Lara out often enough in a particular way like Donald or McGrath did.

In fact, when players in the West Indies dressing room saw the way, as a debutant, Lara handled W+W in his debut innings (IIRC Lara's was the second highest score in that innings after Hooper), they immediately knew that they had found a new batting talent.

Lara's 'issues' against Donald's pace and bounce was limited to just one series. And in that series Lara didn't have any success against Donald in ODIs either. And the issues were more to do with the attitude of Lara and most West Indian players when they came to bat. As I mentioned earlier, West Indian players (especially Lara & Hooper) had zero interest in going to that South Africa tour because they first wanted WICB to settle the long standing player payment issues.

South African Cricket Administration however had invested hugely in that series (5 Tests and 7 ODIs). It would have been a tremendous financial loss for them - if either a second string West Indian side visited, or obviously if the tour was cancelled at the last minute.
Ali Bacher - then head/PR of South African cricket - immediately flew to London where Lara, Hooper, Ambrose and few other senior West Indian players were protesting against the WICB and convinced them to make the tour.

In his book, Ambrose was pretty scathing on Team Manager Clive Lloyd and coach Marshall for siding with WICB instead of the players. He pretty much insinuated that both of them had no interest in the team's success.

West Indian dressing room was in absolute disarray and shambles throughout the tour. None of the West Indian batsmen really looked either interested or capable in constructing and playing a proper Test match innings.

Hooper and Chanders had a worse series than Lara.

I don't know if Lara was being a rebel, but for some inexpicable reason he tried to go after Donald on several occasions (as shown in below video), which I think is simply not the way proper, long haul Test innings is supposed to be played (in fact, there were multiple times where Cronje took Donald off because he was leaking too many runs).

The only match where Lara looked like playing a proper Test innings was in Durban, where he got 50s in both the innings. He really looked set for a big score in the second innings. He was batting on 79, and was involved in a 100+ run partnership with Chanders, the ball was 60 overs old, he had already seen off Donald. That was the only time in that series where Lara looked interested in playing a long innings.

 
honestbharani

honestbharani

Whatever it takes!!!
I remember Lara smashing Donald by coming down the track a few times in that series in 1998 as well. I had written about this before in CW somewhere, but he was basically getting himself out most of the times in that series. I remember his first innings that series basically being 3 fours in a row and then caught in the cordon. lol.
 
Sliferxxxx

Sliferxxxx

U19 Debutant
pardus said:
I think that would be true for every batsman who played from the 90s with a helmet. Each and every one of them have been hit so many times on the head throughout their career, it is hard to imagine what their condition would have been like if they had been playing without a helmet.

Below blows would have definitely been hospital cases without a helmet.




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Yeah we've told Subz this b4 but for whatever reason it doesn't make it through his grey matter....
 
Last edited:
Sliferxxxx

Sliferxxxx

U19 Debutant
pardus said:
I don't think Lara ever had issues with W+W bouncing him out in any of the series they played. In fact, neither of them even got Lara out often enough in a particular way like Donald or McGrath did.

In fact, when players in the West Indies dressing room saw the way, as a debutant, Lara handled W+W in his debut innings (IIRC Lara's was the second highest score in that innings after Hooper), they immediately knew that they had found a new batting talent.

Lara's 'issues' against Donald's pace and bounce was limited to just one series. And in that series Lara didn't have any success against Donald in ODIs either. And the issues were more to do with the attitude of Lara and most West Indian players when they came to bat. As I mentioned earlier, West Indian players (especially Lara & Hooper) had zero interest in going to that South Africa tour because they first wanted WICB to settle the long standing player payment issues.

South African Cricket Administration however had invested hugely in that series (5 Tests and 7 ODIs). It would have been a tremendous financial loss for them - if either a second string West Indian side visited, or obviously if the tour was cancelled at the last minute.
Ali Bacher - then head/PR of South African cricket - immediately flew to London where Lara, Hooper, Ambrose and few other senior West Indian players were protesting against the WICB and convinced them to make the tour.

In his book, Ambrose was pretty scathing on Team Manager Clive Lloyd and coach Marshall for siding with WICB instead of the players. He pretty much insinuated that both of them had no interest in the team's success.

West Indian dressing room was in absolute disarray and shambles throughout the tour. None of the West Indian batsmen really looked either interested or capable in constructing and playing a proper Test match innings.

Hooper and Chanders had a worse series than Lara.

I don't know if Lara was being a rebel, but for some inexpicable reason he tried to go after Donald on several occasions (as shown in below video), which I think is simply not the way proper, long haul Test innings is supposed to be played (in fact, there were multiple times where Cronje took Donald off because he was leaking too many runs).

The only match where Lara looked like playing a proper Test innings was in Durban, where he got 50s in both the innings. He really looked set for a big score in the second innings. He was batting on 79, and was involved in a 100+ run partnership with Chanders, the ball was 60 overs old, he had already seen off Donald. That was the only time in that series where Lara looked interested in playing a long innings.

Click to expand...
A close friend of mine said the same thing regarding Lara's attitude at the time. I personally thinks it's some of that, Donald and Pollock being amazing and maybe he had some unreported injury, some deficiency etc. More evidence for me was how he played England right b4 that South African series. Lara had back to back 700 run plus series vs England in the two prior tours then in that 5 test series, he scores 400 runs at 50 odd but he wasn't his usual dominant self....vs England at home!! That raised eyebrows for me honestly. Your thoughts...
 
capt_Luffy

capt_Luffy

International Coach
Van_Sri said:
Went for hooper because need an extra spinner in the team to complement 4 pace bowlers
Click to expand...
Sobers can bowl spin, Hooper is just not Good enough bat.
Van_Sri said:
I am asking for West Indies and Australia
Click to expand...
WI:

Gayle
Greenidge
Viv
Lara
Lloyd*
Sobers
Dujon+
Marshall
Garner
Holding
Ambrose


Aus:

Hayden
Simpson
Smith
Chappell
Border*
Waugh
Gilchrist+
Cummins
Warne
Lillee
McGrath
 
Last edited:
Johan

Johan

International Vice-Captain
WI

Haynes
Greenidge
Viv
Lara
Lloyd
Sobers
Dujon
Marshall
Garner
Holding
Ambrose

Aus

Hayden
Simpson
Smith
Chappel
Waugh
Border
Gilchrist
Cummins
Warne
Lillee
McGrath

Windies wins or draw
 
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