Humbling act to name stand after Tendulkar

Yet our small country can stand proud alongside other great cricketing nations such as India, Australia, New Zealand, England and South Africa. But this is only possible because we have been able to produce world-class cricketers such as Ian Bishop, Dwayne Bravo, Dinanath Ramnarine, Gus Logie, Darren Ganga and, of course, Brian Lara.

The grand opening of the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba has stirred up a lot of petty and unnecessary controversy that only serves to undermine the significance of having such a stadium, especially on the other side of the Caroni bridge.

To put it simply, “The Prince of Port-of-Spain,” as Lara is popularly nicknamed, has the lifelong honour of a cricket academy located in Tarouba. There is certainly a sense of pride as you drive along the Solomon Hochoy Highway and observe the grand structure and majestic beauty of the stadium with Lara’s record-breaking scores proudly displayed.

Lara is a decorated sportsman who holds too many cricketing records to mention and is honoured and respected throughout the world. Not many in their lifetime can have a US president request a meeting with them as Barack Obama did during his visit to Trinidad. He even referred to Lara as the “Michael Jordan of cricket.” And who can forget the emotional salute of raised bats by Lara’s comrades as he walked off the field after his final match.

Lara is ranked with other cricketing legends including Sachin Tendulkar and has publicly stated that Tendulkar was the cricketer he aspired to emulate. So if Tendulkar has been such an influence on his career, then isn’t it a fitting and humbling act to name a stand after him in a stadium built to honour Lara? After all, it’s supposed to be a cricket academy where we hope to play many international matches and produce future cricketers, as opposed to it being a calypso or Carnival academy.

The gesture might even open up links and avenues to partnerships with international bodies for the development of cricket after this act of solidarity by two legendary cricketers.

Therefore, we should all put politics and politicians aside and accept that Lara deserves the recognition and tribute of this beautiful stadium bearing his name.

VASHTI BOWLAH via email