Ponting leads Aussie and Kiwi praise for retiring Lara

CRICKET: GEORGE'S, Grenada, April 21, 2007: Brian Lara's batting heroics were all the more impressive given the weakness of the West Indies side he played in, said one of the few men able to judge him from the standpoint of someone approaching an equal.

Australia captain Ricky Ponting, bracketed with West Indies skipper Lara and India's Sachin Tendulkar as the best batsmen currently in world cricket, paid a generous tribute on the eve of his old rival's final international appearance, against England, in Barbados on Saturday.

"I've always thought he and Sachin (Tendulkar) have been the two greatest batsmen I've ever played against, probably for different reasons," Ponting said after champions Australia's dominating 215-run World Cup Super Eights win against fellow semi-finalists New Zealand here Friday.

"Brian has got the ability to turn it on when he wants and take an attack apart and Sachin has been the most technically correct player I've seen.

"The thing a lot of people don't think much about with Brian Lara, is that he's basically had the weight of that whole team on his shoulders for the best part of 10 years and had to carry their batting and win them games almost by himself.

"That sort of pressure going into every game, for him to be able stand up and perform is something that should never be overlooked."

Lara, 37, holds the world records for Test and first-class scores. He smashed an unbeaten 400 against England in the Antigua Test in 2004 and an unbeaten 501 for Warwickshire against Durham in the English county championship in 1994.

He is the highest scorer in Tests with 11,953 runs in 131 matches with 34 centuries and the fifth-highest in one-dayers with 10,387 in 298 games.

But his 17-year international career has coincided with a sharp decline in West Indies cricket, his captaincy receiving renewed criticism as the hosts failed to qualify for the World Cup semi-finals.

However, his batting ability has Australia opener Matthew Hayden, who topped Lara's then Test record score of 375 by making 380 against Zimbabwe at Perth during the 2003-04 season, said his fellow left-hander's exceptionally high backlift made him stand out.

"Brian is probably unheralded as far as batting technique goes. He's got an unusual, unorthodox technique which makes bowlers look embarrassed at times. I love the way he manipulates the field.

"It's a pretty sad day for cricket because he is a tremendous ambassador for the game."

New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming, another lefty, added: "I heard him (Lara) say he wanted to be an entertainer; he was all that and more.

"He was a player who created interest in New Zealand and around the world - so he brought more players to the game.

"For a left-hander he was inspirational to watch and play against."

AFP