Two of the finest batters of all time, India great Sachin Tendulkar and West Indies legend Brian Lara broke several records during their playing days, and many of them still stand till date. While Tendulkar is the all-time leading run-scorer in both Tests (15,921) and ODIs (18,426), Lara holds the record for the highest score by a batter in Tests (400) and First Class Cricket (501). While Lara has always been a huge admirer of Tendulkar, and vice-versa, the former West Indies has named a player who he thinks was even more naturally gifted than him and the ‘Master Blaster’.
Lara said that in terms for raw talent, his former teammate Carl Hooper was the best player he has ever seen.
“Carl was easily one of the best players I’ve ever seen. I would say that not even Tendulkar and myself would come close to that talent. Separate Carl’s career from playing to captaining and his numbers are very different. As a captain he averaged near to 50, so he enjoyed the responsibility. It’s sad that only as a captain did he fulfil his true potential,” Lara wrote in his new book, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
Lara even mentioned that legendary West Indies batter Vivian Richard loved Hooper than him, even though he didn’t want either to be better than him.
Now listen, it needs to be said that Viv Richards never cried down on a person because he didn’t want them to be great like him. His sternness was who he was, but he never wanted you not to do well. It was just how he was. And look, Viv loved Carl. Much more than he loved me, that’s for sure. But the way Viv shows love didn’t resonate with Carl.
Recently, Lara picked two players each from England and India who can break his record of 400 runs in a Test innings.
“There were players in my time who challenged, or at least went past the 300 mark – Virender Sehwag, Chris Gayle, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Sanath Jayasuriya. They were pretty much aggressive players,” Lara told The Daily Mail.
“How many aggressive players do you have playing today? Especially in the England team. Zak Crawley and Harry Brook. Maybe in the Indian team? Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill. If they find the right situation, the records could be broken – both of them,” he added.
