West Indies Legend Rounds Top 5

BRIAN LARA’S BIRTHDAY: West Indies big hitter Brian Lara is a year older today. Lara is one of the greatest batsmen in world cricket. He is also the Windies’ best run-getter in the test. Lara amassed 11,953 runs in the game’s longest format in 131 Tests with the help of 34 hundred, nine double century and 48 fifty. His highest score in red ball cricket is 400 which is also a world record.

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And even today, after years of his retirement, cricket fans still appreciate his classic sweep. He is the head coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the current IPL (Indian Premier League). Lara has played several breakthrough rounds during his 17-year career, on Brian Lara’s birthday, here we look back at his five best shots:

Brian Lara’s birthday: memorable shots

1. Lara scored 153 unbeaten against Australia in the 4th leg
   Lara’s undefeated 153-point shot against Australia in the 4th leg of the third Test match in Bridgetown is considered the best shot of his career. Australia posted a mammoth total of 490 for the loss of ten wickets in the first innings. The Windies were knocked out for 329 in the second. However, the visitors manage to restrict the host for 146 in the third leg of the match.
   West Indies were given a target 308 runs in the final innings and were left shocked at 105/5 before Lara took charge of the game. He scored 153 runs on 256 balls assisted by 19 fours and a six and guided his team to a one-wicket victory over Australia.
2. Brian Lara’s first Test Cent, an epic hit of 277
   The former West Indies skipper had a knack for scoring big shots and his first Test Hundred was a testament to that. Lara’s first Test century came in just her fifth match against the mighty Australians at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). Batting first, Australia posted a total of 503 runs for the loss of nine wickets before declaring. Chasing 503, the Windies’ opener fell on the cheap and the West Indies were left reeling at 31/2.
   After two first wickets, Lara and Sir Richie Richardson took charge of their innings and took Windies to 324/3. Lara went on to score 277 points in that game with 38 four assists.
3. Brian Lara scores 115 against South Africa in 2004
   The Caribbean batting maestro defied all the odds against a formidable South African bowling attack, including Shaun Pollock, Makhaya Ntini and Jacques Kallis, to score 115 points in the Cape Town Test. Beating first, South Africa posted 532 runs for the loss of ten wickets and many thought Proteas would win the game by knocking out the visitors in one day.
   However, Lara and Gayle held the West Indies fort as they scored 427 points before being knocked out in the first set. The match ended in a draw.
4. Lara scored 375 against England in 1994
   Brian Lara made St. John’s field history in 1994, when he notched the highest individual score of the era in the game’s longest format. Lara scored 375 points against England to break Sir Garfield Sobers’ record.
   Sobers had scored an unbeaten 365 against Pakistan in 1958 and prior to Lara’s feat it was the highest individual score in the test. Lara’s 375-point shot was interlaced with 45 limits. The match ended in a draw. Lara’s record stood for the next ten years before Matthew Hayden topped his tally with a 380-point shot against Zimbabwe.
5. Lara became the first cricket to score a quadruple century in Test
   Just six months after Hayden surpassed Lara’s highest individual record in Test cricket with a searing 380, the West Indies legend has reclaimed his place by scoring the first-ever quadruple century in red-ball cricket.
   Lara scored the first 400 in world cricket at St. John’s Ground against England. His shot was laced 43 fours and four sixes. The match between the West Indies and England ended in a draw.

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