Lara to sit out some Zimbabwe matches

Brian Lara in action in the first ODI © The Nation

Look out for a stand-in West Indies captain very soon. That's because Brian Lara doesn't plan to play the entire seven-match ODI series against Zimbabwe.

Lara, who turns 37 today, made the revelation when pressed on the thinking that led to the West Indies going into the first two matches without an appointed vice-captain, a move which he tried to downplay.

"I sense that you're going to see a [deputy] captain on the field before the series is over because I don't think I have intentions of playing all seven [matches]," Lara said. "By then you would know who the vice-captain is. If you just hold strain a bit . . . it should not be a great topic at this present time. It will solve itself."

Lara, the multiple world record holder who is in his third reign as West Indies captain, compared the situation to when he first came into the team in 1991 when he said there was no appointed second-in-command. In the circumstances that currently exist, if Lara has to leave the field, he will appoint someone to take over.

His decision to skip a few matches is a continuation of recent trends in which he has cut back on his appearances in the more physically demanding limited-overs game.

"I'm 37 years of age. I want to play both forms of the game. I want to play in the World Cup, but I would also like to play Test cricket against India, Pakistan and whoever else," he said. "The main thing is if we can rotate a bit and not necessarily before a series is decided. If we play against India and we happened to be three up, you are going to see a chance where guys are given a rest."

Lara also defended his decision to bat at No. 6 in both matches over the weekend at the Antigua Recreation Ground. "Even if we are playing against Australia, the top four should dominate any batting line-up," he said. "I want to see the likes of Ramdin, Bravo, Smith, Samuels get the opportunity. It is about making sure that everybody gets a couple hits and no one is hogging the batting.

"This West Indies team is not going to play names anymore. We're going to play to a plan. We're going to have positions, we're going to have requirements for those positions it doesn't matter who it is."

Asked how he would respond to those who feel that as the leading batsman in the team, his place in the order should be among the top four, Lara said it was time others in the team took on more responsibility.

"I'm going to have my responsibility, if it's batting, at whatever position in the order," Lara said. "But I still feel we are playing with 11 guys. You might have one player who is supposed to be the premier batsman in the team but one of the main things this team is lacking is in-house competition.

"Whoever we consider to be the best batsman, I want to see people competing with him. In my early days in the 1990s, there was Desmond Haynes, Richie Richardson, but at the end of any series I wanted to be counted as the top batsman in that series. That's what has to be created here."