King: No need to change Lara

BRISBANE, Australia: New West Indies cricket coach Bennett King has thrown his support behind Brian Lara to retain the job of West Indies captain. Under the policy of the West Indies Cricket Board, Lara’s position at the helm of the team will be under review ahead of the West Indies’ trip in January to Australia, where they will take part in the World Series Cricket limited-overs series. “I’ve watched him perform his captaincy duties on the field and I think he’s quite intuitive,” King told BBC Sport. “There are decisions that will be made later in the piece, but at the moment I don’t see any need for change.”

Lara has been heavily criticised by former players, the media and fans for his lack of leadership skills in his second coming as West Indies captain, but led the side to a stunning triumph in the ICC Champions Trophy in September. On his arrival in the Caribbean, King’s disclosed that his first order of business will be to help choose a squad for the WSC in Australia and supervise a three-week preparatory camp, starting on November 29. “My first prority is to have meetings with the selectors and get to know the players so the camp will be quite intense,” he said. “I will have a look at the structures in place. If there are some basic things we can implement when I first get there it will help us build a strong base for the future.”