'I'm hoping to put my best foot forward' - Lara

Indian fans have seen plenty of Sachin Tendulkar's hundreds, long Rahul Dravid innings, more of Ricky Ponting than they would have liked, but so little of Brian Lara, that it's a crying shame. Although he has played 128 Tests and 275 one-day internationals - a massive number by any reckoning - it is more than ten years since he last played an international game on Indian soil. Sure, he has been here ever so often, but that has been for commercial endorsements and celebrity appearances. The last time the high back-lift and flashing blade were in action in an ODI was in the 1996 World Cup semi-final, against Australia at Mohali. The last time he played a Test in India was even before that, in December 1994, at Chandigarh.

If there is some hope that the Sardar Patel Gujarat Stadium in Ahmedabad will get some sort of a crowd in for this qualifying match in the ICC Champions Trophy, it is that people will take this rare chance to catch Lara in action. The fact that the ground is quite far from the city - about 10 kilometres from the city centre - will be a deterrent, as will the dry heat, but it is a Sunday. And people have long said that the one batsman they would pay good money to watch, and travel far to watch, is Lara. Time will tell if they can walk the talk.

But for Lara, crowds or no crowds, India, and playing here, certainly holds some charm. "Unfortunately the time the West Indies came here I was not well and I couldn't make the tour a few years back," he said at a pre-match press conference, when asked about the long gap since he last played here. "To me the passion that is shown for cricket in India, and the way the public receives cricketers - not just the Indian team - is just tremendous."

"They talk about Lord's being the home of cricket in terms of a cricket ground, but in terms of the actual game, cricket is definitely at home here in India. It's unfortunate that it's been a pretty long time, but there's no better time to make up for that than now. I'm hoping to put my best foot forward and entertain the Indian crowd."

The crowds will be hoping that he doesn't just put his first foot forward, but that he bats high up in the order. People would not have forgotten the one time when he slipped down the order to No. 9, in the recent DLF Cup, to give some of his team-mates the chance to show some responsibility. They failed utterly, however, falling short of a small target of 162. But Lara was clear that there would be no more experimenting for the moment. The West Indies' first task was to qualify for the main draw of the Champions Trophy.

To do so, they need their top-order, led by Lara, to fire. This means that Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul are crucial to their fortunes. The likes of Runako Morton and Wavell Hinds - in whom Lara has shown tremendous faith - need to pick their games up. Fortunately for them, though, the bowling is coming through nicely, with Ian Bradshaw developing into the quintessential one-day performer, backed up ably by the two Dwaynes - Smith and Bravo, leaving the genuinely quick Fidel Edwards to express himself fully.

Zimbabwe should not really pose West Indies any serious problems, but those following West Indian cricket in recent times won't take anything for granted. They've managed to turn just-about invincible positions into losing ones at the least prompting. For now, though, it's all eyes on Lara, and the magic he can produce with his bat. It's unlikely that he'll get a crowd as large as his artistry deserves, but who knows, one day, that might happen. Like he said, "My dream is to play a Test match at Eden Gardens. Hopefully I can last that long."