"I'll handle Shane Warne" - Brian Lara recalls his statement ahead of epic 277 at Sydney Cricket Ground
Former West Indian great Brian Lara recently recalled his battle with legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne in Sydney during Australia's 1992-93 tour. In particular, the former left-handed batter remembered how he assured the team manager of his ability to handle Warne.
Lara's innings of 277 at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) remains one of the best knocks in Australia by an overseas batter. The Trinidadian faced 372 deliveries as the game resulted in a draw.
Speaking to Fox Sports, Lara claimed that his confidence in playing Warne well came from playing plenty of such bowlers in domestic cricket, especially from Trinidad. He said:
"I remember being on the flight from Melbourne to Sydney, and I told the manager not to worry. I’ll handle Shane Warne. Heading to Sydney, it was a Test venue where West Indies normally don’t play very well, or Australia have the upper hand because it’s a spinning venue. I know for a fact there was this sort of nervousness going around the dressing room."
A class act right from the start. Go back to 1993 and re-live a maiden Test match century for Brian Lara, who turns 51 today 😍 https://t.co/uoZrJpeEUB
The 131-Test veteran continued:
"The reason I said it might sound a bit arrogant, but the reason I said it is we play a lot of spin. We have a lot of back-of-the-hand spinners, a lot of off-spinners, a lot of left-arm spinners. The majority of spinners who have played for the West Indies came from these two islands (Trinidad and Tobago)."
Lara's Herculean efforts with the bat enabled the West Indies to secure a 2-1 victory over Australia in the five-Test series. With 466 runs at 58.25, he was the tourists' highest run-getter.
"It was actually my first double century in any form of the game" - Brian Lara
The 53-year-old further claimed that the 277 was the most important knock of his career, given it was the first time he had batted for so long and learnt so much.
"To me, it was just great," Lara said. "I was young, excited about the whole thing. Really wanted to get my first Test hundred and then I blossomed into something much bigger. It taught me a lot about my game."
"I was one that played 30 overs, 35 overs, so I never really had the opportunity to bat long," he added. "It was actually my first double century in any form of the game."
The answer is of course @BrianLara, who #OnThisDay in 1999 stunned Australia with an unbeaten 153* to guide West Indies to a memorable one-wicket victory! 👏 https://t.co/OWeeQ3H0ix
Meanwhile, Australia and the West Indies will lock horns in a two-Test series, starting in Perth on Thursday, December 1.