Cricketing legend Brian Lara came down hard on the current West Indies team following their loss to India in the IND vs WI 1st Test. Roston Chase and co. were handed an innings and 140-run thrashing by the hosts at the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad. Following the loss, the Windies captain blamed struggle for finances and infrastructure for their poor performance against India. This didn’t sit well with Lara.
Lara questions dedication of West Indies stars
Speaking at the CEAT Cricket Rating Awards on Tuesday, Lara asked if the players really wanted to play for West Indies and if they had cricket in their heart. The legend noted that they did not have the best facilities three or four decades back, but that didn’t prohibit stars like Sir Viv Richards from performing well. Lara pointed out that the current team simply did not have the same passion that the side once had.
“If you want to get things done, you have to have the capital to do it. So that is a major part. But at the same time, I would like to urge Roston Chase and the other guys to do they have the cricket at heart? Do they really want to play for the West Indies? And that is the most important thing because you would find a way. I mean, we did not have better facilities 30-40 years ago. Viv Richards didn’t bat on any better practice pitches or anything. We had to do the same thing, the same grind, but the passion was different,” Lara said
Lara further said that while he agreed with Chase on the financial matters, the players needed to create the love and desire to play for the country. He said that while he won’t single out any player for preferring to play in various T20 tournaments instead of international cricket owing to the pay disparity, the players should also feel that it was important to play for the Windies.
“The passion to play for the West Indies was different. So I urge the young players to realise that this is a wonderful opportunity. And I am almost sure that every single one of their parents would have had in the back of their mind their son playing for the West Indies, their son doing well for the West Indies, because it meant a lot back in those days. So I agree with [Chase on West Indies’ struggles for finances], but I still believe there is an onus on each young player to create that love and desire to play for West Indies,” he added.
