Who's Brian Lara?
Avinash Subramaniam
Is he the magician who could do no wrong during the purple patch when he amassed all those 'Bradmanasque' knocks? (Including the almost superhuman scores of 375 and 501.) Or is he the troubled superstar/poster boy/pampered brat who incredibly carped that the game that has made him everything he is/was to all of us was ruining him?
Is he, arguably, the only man in contemporary cricket to have taken on the mighty Aussies... and won? Albeit off and on and give or take a Sachin Tendulkar. But then, that's another story. And an argument that'll, perhaps, never be settled. Though here's one with no difficult answers. Is Sachin as much of an enigma? Fortunately for India, not.
And yet, Lara also happens to be the only man to have mastered the Aussies and fallen prey the most, to them! Strange but true, the one man to best have the measure of Mcgrath and Co. is also the one man most likely to let them get under his skin. Just one case in point, his dismissal in the second innings of the third Test. Only part of the credit for which should go to the bowler Miller. Fact of the matter is, Lara, once again, let the boorish Aussie tactics get to him. Lara got Lara. Again. Such is the life and times of Brian Lara. A man who too, too many an agonizing time reminds me of our 'infuriatingly-inexplicable' Indian team.
Consider this. On the one hand, here is a man who single-handedly engineered the Windies revival in the current series Down Under, even if only in part, with a by now characteristic 'grab-the-opposition-by-the-unmentionables' kind of big hundred. A man with more 'god given' talent and crowd-pulling capabilities than any living cricketer on earth. And still, this is a man with just as much ammo to smear him with.
Ammo ranging from accusations of high-handedness from 'His Highhandedness'. Of not exactly being the kind of influence Windies cricket needs. (Especially in these troubled times.) A man who lives by a different set of rules. A man who seemed reluctant to play under at least one captain. A man with a, seemingly unholy, penchant for the good life. A man who may have even fixed matches. (Of course, nobody really believes the CBI. After all, it's only an Asian investigating agency.) Another hero with clay feet. (Don't we know those kinds.) A man in desperate need of a culture of discipline. (Don't we know those kinds too!) A man who, only if looked at under an extremely critical microscope, may be going the Azza way. Except... we don't know Brian Lara. But then, did we/do we know Azza? (Different question, different article. And one that has been dealt with beautifully in the three-part Azza interview by Faisal.)
Which brings us back to ... who's Lara? Tough question, isn't it? How about we start with 'who is not Lara?
For one, he's not a man at peace with himself. Worse, he's not a man at ease with his copious gifts of nature. A man not sure what to do with a world at his feet. He is also not, not even close to, the man who scored that big double hundred with such ridiculous ease on his last tour Down Under. (Or any of the numerous other superhuman achievements he carried out with seemingly ridiculous ease.) Worst of all, this is not the man West Indian cricket so badly needs to look for inspiration from.
The really sad part of it all though is, Lara is perhaps the only man West Indian cricket will have to look for inspiration from. Jimmy Adams sorely lacks the talent and charisma needed to pull this team back up from the unholy depths it finds itself wallowing in. One reason being (one of the many), at his disposal is an attack that wouldn't classify as even second string when compared to the bowlers from the years gone by. Looked at differently, neither do most of his batsman seem to possess the technique, scope and hunger needed to succeed in the big league. So at the end of the day, all Jimmy has is Lara. Just as soon as Lara can find ... well, the old Lara.
In which case shouldn't the question be where is Lara? Clues, suggestions and tips on the great man's whereabouts eagerly welcomed at avinash@eurorscgindia.com
Avinash Subramaniam
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