Record nothing personal - WI skipper

BULAWAYO: Record-breaking Brian Lara said his remaining goals as a cricketer were not personal but geared towards the success of the West Indies team. “My goals have changed in the last six months, since I was re-appointed captain of the West Indies team,” Lara told Reuters. “It’s great to have a majority of young players in our team, and we’re looking forward to getting West Indies cricket back to where it belongs.” Lara became the most prolific Test batsman in West Indies history yesterday when he scored 191 on the second day of the second Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo. The West Indies captain went into the match needing 107 runs to surpass Sir Viv Richards’ aggregate of 8,540 runs in Tests.

“I think it’s impossible to be invincible in today’s game, but at least we can be a force to be reckoned with,” he added. “We’ve been in decline for quite some time, so my main goal is not personal. It’s to see this young team develop into a competitive team against the best teams in the world.” Lara, Richards and Sir Garfield Sobers are the only West Indians to have scored more than 8,000 runs in Tests. Lara said he was proud to be among them. “When I went past 8,000 runs, I thought belonging in that group of West Indians was very, very special,” Lara said. He attributed his success to good health, consistency and the value he placed on being part of the West Indies team. “Going past Sir Vivian is something I put down to longevity in the game, the fact that I try as much as possible to stay away from injury. It’s more to do with being out there and playing for West Indies, being one of the names always called in the XI. I’ve never been dropped in either form of the game. I will cherish it for those reasons.” Lara leapfrogged England’s Alec Stewart and Richards to go from ninth to seventh on the list of all-time run scorers. Only Steve Waugh of Australia and India’s Sachin Tendulkar have scored more runs than him among current players.