Lara says he will be back soon
He said it in a very soft tone, but the serious look on the face of Brian Charles Lara confirmed his intent
Barry Alleyne
23-Dec-2001
He said it in a very soft tone, but the serious look on the
face of Brian Charles Lara confirmed his intent.
I'll be back. My career is far from over. I'll be back in
the runs soon, the region's master batsman told the SUNDAY
SUN yesterday evening, minutes after returning to the
Caribbean from another failed team tour, this one of Sri
Lanka.
Wincing occasionally and rubbing the sides of the soft cast
which protects the hairline fracture of the best left elbow
in Test cricket, Lara refused to think negatively about the
freak accident last week with Marvan Atapattu that will keep
him out of the game for at least six weeks, and a
forthcoming tour of Pakistan.
It was an accident. Accidents happen in sport, so you can't
think about it any other way. I don't remember much of what
happened, but in the hospital I did say at one stage: Why
me?
I'm over that now, because this injury is just another
setback. It could have happened earlier in my career when I
was doing well, but it chose to happen now, Lara said.
I know it's going to take some time, but with my approach to
the game, I know I'll be back to where I was when the injury
happened. I expect some stiffness soon after the cast comes
off, but I already have a format in mind about how I plan to
work before I can play again.
I'm focused mentally even though I'm out of the game, and
this rest will also be the perfect opportunity for my
hamstring to get the required rest it really needs to heal.
The Trinidadian said it was sad that another West Indies
overseas tour had ended in a Test series defeat, but some
positive signs were still seen, apart from his return to
scintillating form.
We can't just worry about the bad things all the time. We
have to take whatever we can from the good, and improve on
that. That's the only way West Indies cricket can move out
of this phase of losing overseas, Lara added.
He noted that each player should use his experience of
losing as a measuring stick of his individual performance.
I've learnt over my career it makes absolutely no sense to
dwell on the past, Lara said as he sat a couple feet away
from his British model girlfriend Lynnsey Ward at the
Airport en route to Trinidad and Tobago.