The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Lara weaves magic, back on top

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Apr 13, 2004

Sport

Sport - Cricket

Lara weaves magic, back on top

ST. JOHN'S (ANTIGUA), APRIL 12. The West Indies captain Brian Lara scored 400 and was Test cricket's highest scorer again on the third day of the fourth Test against England on Monday.

Lara and wicketkeeper Ridley Jacobs, who notched up his third Test century with an unbeaten 107, made 282 for the sixth wicket when the West Indies declared at 751 for five in its first innings half an hour after lunch.

It is the highest total ever scored in a Test against England, surpassing Australia's 729 for 6 declared at Lord's in 1930.

Twenty minutes before lunch, Lara stepped down the pitch to hit off-spinner Gareth Batty for his fourth 6 to go level with Australia's Matthew Hayden, whose 380 against Zimbabwe in Perth last October eclipsed Lara's own 375 in 1994, also against England at Antigua Recreation Ground.

He swept the next ball, his 546th, for his 42nd four to retake the record. Another sweep for a single off Batty brought up 400 off 582 balls, including 43 fours, in two minutes undere 13 hours at the wicket.

His only chance was at 293 on Sunday when a stinging drive burst through Batty's hands on its way to the boundary.

A packed crowd of more than 12,000, over half of them England supporters, rose to acclaim Lara as he removed his helmet, jumped, and punched the air in celebration.

He was soon surrounded by England players, offering their congratulations, and Baldwin Spencer, the recently elected Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, who led a small delegation onto the field to shake Lara's hand.

Before resuming strike, Lara paused to kiss the pitch.

``When I scored it (375 in 1994) before, I did not know what to expect,'' Lara said at lunch. ``This time it was very tiring but I'm here again. ``Matthew Hayden must have batted very well against Zimbabwe,'' he added. ``It doesn't matter who you're playing against. It's very hard.

``Coming back six or seven months later to do it all over again I feel great, but to say I knew I would have done it again, no.''

England has already secured the series, its first in 36 years in the Caribbean, with easy victories in the first three Tests.

``It's a great feeling but it's dampened a bit by the series result,'' Lara said. ``I'm looking forward to us pulling something back in this Test match.''

Lara, who also holds the record score in first-class cricket of 501 not out for Warwickshire in an English county league match in 1994, joined Australian great Don Bradman on Sunday as the only batsmen to score 300 twice in Tests.

He resumed at 313 on Monday with the West Indies 595 for 5, and showed signs of weariness. He was tested by fiery, short-pitched bowling with the third new ball by England's fastest bowler, Steve Harmison.

But the pitch remained ideal for batting in clear, sunny weather and England's woes were compounded when Harmison was barred from bowling for the rest of the innings after his third warning from umpires Aleem Dar of Pakistan and Darrell Hair of Australia for running on the unrestricted area of the pitch.

Fellow fast bowler Matthew Hoggard, had been confined to his hotel bed with a stomach ailment since midway through the second day.

Jacobs' third century

Jacobs, a native Antiguan, provided solid support to Lara, reaching his third Test century just before lunch to the delight of his home fans. His unbeaten century came off 207 balls, with eight 4s and three 6s.

He had a lucky escape at 87 when he was bowled by England captain Michael Vaughan, but umpire Hair's no-ball call reprieved him. — AP

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport