Chanders bats for selectors, Lara

"We’ve been resting Brian. He has been struggling a little bit," said Chanderpaul on Wednesday in response to media queries about Lara’s absence for the tour-opening Twenty20 match at Eden Park on Thursday and the five-match One-Day International (ODI) series that follows. "We’re trying to save him, probably for the World Cup, and give him some rest so that he could be ready for those games. We can’t push him too hard."

The 36-year-old former captain had stated since May of last year that he wished to be rested from ODI’s with the intention of prolonging his Test career, although he still hoped to be a factor at the World Cup in the Caribbean next year. Lara’s last one-dayer was the rain-affected fifth and final fixture against South Africa in Port of Spain, a match that was reduced to 20 overs-per-side and saw the visitors completing victory to seal a 5-0 sweep of the series.

Pakistan also blanked the hosts 3-0 in their limited-over series while a makeshift squad in Sri Lanka lost their first two matches of the triangular series with the home team and India before the losing streak was finally ended with victory over the Sri Lankans in Colombo.

"These things are going to come and go. We’ll always have these things, but we have to look at Brian’s situation also," was Chanderpaul’s rather non-committal reaction to Sir Vivian’s obvious displeasure at the premier batsman missing out on the first part of what is expected to be another difficult tour for the Caribbean side.

"He’s struggling a little bit so we have to help him also," Chanderpaul said.

After scoring a vital 153 against Guyana last month in his first match for Trinidad and Tobago in two years, Lara missed the next Carib Beer Series fixture against the Windwards because of a knee injury.

In his absence, the twin-island state crashed to a humiliating defeat in Tobago before rebounding with a 264-run hammering of Barbados that gave them the regional first-class title for the first time in 21 years.

Lara returned to the line-up for that match at the Carlton Club ground in Bridgetown, scoring 53 and 47.

Chanderpaul acknowledged that with the star batsman joining the tour for the three-Test series in March, there will be a greater responsibility on him initially as one of just three players in the current squad with previous experience of New Zealand conditions at senior international level.

"There’s always pressure there. It probably affected my game in Australia.

Hopefully I can get over it now and do well on this tour," Chanderpaul said, alluding to his own struggle for runs during the three-Test series against Ricky Ponting’s side last November.

Following the Twenty20 fixture, the West Indies and New Zealand teams travel to Wellington for the opening One-Day International on Saturday (Friday night Caribbean time), a day/night fixture at Westpac Stadium.