CHENNAI: This elegant left-hander was disappointed when none of the franchises in the IPL bid for him last January. But the greatest disappointment for legend Brian Lara was when West Indies was ousted in the semifinals of the 1996 World Cup by Australia.

“At one-point in the match, we were sailing through our innings. Suddenly, we lost track and from a winning position we lost by only five runs,” said Lara, reminiscing of the disastrous batting collapse of the Carribeans.

Lara also believes the deciding factor in this World Cup will be momentum. “The fortunes of a team will depend on how a side carries the momentum throughout the tournament. In these conditions, you need to sustain your energy levels. You don’t want to start on top and run out of steam in the later stages.,” the 41-year-old said.

The southpaw has complete confidence on the current West Indies outfit. “Sport is a circle. We started dominating the cricket world before Australia took over the mantle. In the last couple of years, the Aussies seem to struggle. I believe the time of invincibility is over since the game has become more competitive as the teams keep on playing against each other round the year,” said Lara adding, “This time Windies has good reason to come on top if our batting clicks. Even India’s chances are good.

“India has always been good batting outfits. The reason they failed to become the number one team is that their level of performance dipped the moment they went abroad. But the USP of the present side is that they have performed in situations not conducive to their strength — batting on flat sub-continent wickets. This is where the present team under Mahendra Singh Dhoni has scored over past teams,” he signed off.

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