G Wattley: Lara looks to rebound, denies rift with Walsh (7 Oct 1997)

Tuesday, October 7, 1997

Lara looks to rebound denies rift with Walsh

By GARTH WATTLEY

DEFEATED but not deflated, Trinidad and Tobago's Red Stripe Bowl cricketers are looking to regroup and rebound for their third match against the Windward Islands at Portland tomorrow.

T&T, the defending champions had a mixed first weekend in zone "A" of the revamped limited overs competition. They hammered Bermuda by 184 runs on Saturday but slumped to a three-wicket defeat in a low-scoring game against hosts Jamaica the next day.

"You can only do better," skipper Brian Lara told the Expressyesterday. Lara was specifically referring to the batting collapse that saw his side crumble for 84 after they had taken first strike.

And taking an even more philosophical view of the matter, he added: "We are looking to improve and this is the time to realise where your faults are."

The "faults" were clear to all on Sunday, a point quickly conceded by manager/coach Rangy Nanan.

"Naturally we are disappointed. Our batting did not click yesterday (Sunday)," he began. "And by losing early wickets we were placed under pressure."

"Rose bowled beautifully, doing something with the ball. And the loss of Ragoonath and Lara set us back," Nanan added.

'But with Bishop and Simmons batting quite well, we felt if we made 140, 150 runs, we would still have a chance of winning."

That late-order rally did not materialise, however. At this stage of the tournament, the loss is one that the local team can absorb. All four teams in the zone proceed automatically to the quarter-finals, with the preliminary round action merely determining what the match-ups will be.

Lara's team had hoped to top the zone in order to meet the bottom team in the quarter-finals, expected to be newcomers Bermuda. But as things now stand, they could be meeting the Windwards, which makes tomorrow's clash important.

"We want to beat them so that when we meet in the quarter-finals, we will have the edge pyschologically," Nanan said.

But the expected change in fortunes when they take the field in Melbourne will not come without planning. And the strategy involves an immediate change in the line-up.

West Indies "A" team leg-spinner Dinanath Ramnarine, who has sat in the pavilion for the two matches so far, is expected to get his first game. What Lara and Nanan will be hoping for is a change in form. The skipper in particular will be eager to put behind him the first ball "duck" he suffered against Franklin Rose on Sunday and the speculation over his relationship with West Indies captain Courtney Walsh.

A Cana report on Sunday speculated over possible strained relations between the two based on Walsh's non-appearance for the toss, which was taken by Robert Samuels. Walsh, it was said, had to use the washroom. Yesterday, Lara denied reports about a "rift", saying he had "no problem" with the WI skipper.

"Why can't he have a genuine reason for not coming out to toss?" he asked.

The report also dealt with comments reported to have made been made by Lara that he was disappointed not to be selected ahead of Walsh to lead the WI squad in Pakistan and that history would record the non-appointment as "unfortunate," based on what he described as the "popular view" that he should be at the helm.

But the only comments Lara made on the subject came in a local newspaper last month.

"I think I was selected to lead the team but it was a bit unfortunate that the higher authorities didn't see it that way.

Having four selectors of great Test experience ranging from the 1950s or whenever they started playing cricket, come together and choose someone as captain and then not to be given he opportunity by the higher authorities, of course it was disturbing."

Source :: The Trinidad Express (https://www.trinidad.net/express/)