Lara holds the key to a change in fortunes

The West Indies cricket team has now reached the point of no return in this five Test series. If they are to do anything positive in this tour of Australia, they must do the business now, in this third Test.

There is no turning back and given the wonderful weather so far in South Australia, not even the Gods seem to want to lend a helping hand.

Believe it or not, much is in the West Indies favor to be more productive than they have been so far this tour. In some strange twist of fate, the pendulum has swung slightly towards them, but they must be prepared to take their opportunities immediately.

Replacements for the vacancies created by injuries to Brett Lee and Steve Waugh have been easy to find but while Colin Miller and Damien Martyn, are very good players in their own right, there will be some disruption in the team, despite acting captain Adam Gilchrist, suggesting otherwise.

Says Gilchrist: "I may be buzzing a bit from the adrenaline now for the appointment, but we plan our cricket and stick to that general plan. Steve Waugh has told me to `back myself', go with my gut feeling. Someone has got to make final decisions and for this game, that is me!"

That may be well and good, but even with a smooth transition from Steve Waugh to Adam Gilchrist, there still must be some disruptive element, even for an all-conquering team. Personal experiences tell me this.

The Adelaide Oval must be the best batting track in the world, or at least in Australia. It is ideal for batsmen wanting to play shots, or for bowlers who are prepared to work hard for their results, as the ball does come on to the batsman. In other words, it is probably the best "cricketing" wicket around.

I felt some euphoria as we flew over The Oval in our final approach to the Adelaide Airport. From about 2000 feet, it looks like a massive green carpet, with just a sliver of brown in the middle. A marvellous site, the ideal mixture of the old - the pavilion etc - with the new - the floodlight stations.

Personally, Adelaide is very special. I played two Tests here, in 1979/80 and 1981/82 and we won both, Indeed, we came from behind, being 1-0 nil down, to win the last Test in 1981/2, thanks mainly to Clive Lloyd's batting. Of course, this is also where Lance Gibbs took his hat-trick in 1961.

The most important feature, though, of a West Indies comeback, if there is to be one, would be the fact that Brian Lara, the enigma of the West Indies cricket team, has made some very welcomed runs, 231 of them, to be exact. While there is some conjecture that he is still not fully fit, feeling pains from his shoulder and hamstring, and may not even play, I could say, without any doubt whatsoever, that Lara MUST play!! It is as simple as that.

It should be noted that Lara's resurgence has coincided with the recent inclusion of Joe Hoad, the Barbadian psychologist/coach who lives in South Australia has had a successful career in sport, for over 20 years. It happened before when Dr. Rudi Webster joined the team, against Australia last year after the West Indies had been bowled out for 51. Lara went on to make 214 in Jamaica, then that 153, probably his best innings ever, to win two Tests on his own. I really believe that co-incidences do not happen, but that it is someone else's plan!!

Jimmy Adams, the West Indian captain, is realistic as well as hopeful and like the rest of the team has been very chirpy and as energetic throughout this tour. While he acknowledges that the final say on Lara's injury will be with Lara himself, Adams "expects him to be in the final XI.

Jimmy Adams even suggests: "There is a sense of expectancy here. The performances at Tasmania were encouraging. To have Brian and Ridley (Jacobs) bat as well as they did, gave us all great encouragement, confidence and opportunity too."

"I think that it has helped to have Joe Hoad (the psychologist/coach) with the team, who is involved by invitation. Officially, he is only with the team until Saturday, but I think that he brings certain skills to the table that we did not have before. He is a very nice man and he has come up with some very good ideas. If a team is searching for answers, then his presence and the content could be one of the avenues to be used to explore."

Whatever it takes, the West Indies will certainly have to pull out all of the stops to be competitive in this third Test, much less win it. Australia would not want to stop the winning streak, now up to 12 in a row. Adam Gilchrist himself has suggested that he does not want to be the player/captain who "stops" the winning streak.

The West Indies does not only need to stop that streak, of losing 16 of the last 17 overseas Test games, but to effect their own comeback trail. Brian Lara will again be required to lead from the front, in every respect and the rest would do well to follow his example.