Lara loads shot gun first as Scotland face a double barrel (25 May 1999)

25 May 1999

Lara loads shot gun first as Scotland face a double barrel

Trevor Chesterfield

Poor Scotland. They face the sort of double barrel shot gun effect in their first World Cup which is as daunting as any of the ICC associate member countries are likely to face, and in a matter of five days.

First it was New Zealand's captain Stephen Fleming when issuing a bald, if factual satement after losing to the West Indies in their Group B match at Northlands Road in Southampton on yet another chilly windswept day.

We now have to concentrate on Pakistan and do what we can and then it is Scotland's turn, was the tight if prosaic comment from the forthright Kiwi. Then up stepped Brian Lara, flushed with the success of beating New Zealand by seven wickets after winning the toss and which allowed his five seamer to demonstrate why they can yet become a potent force should they reach the Super Sixes.

Before we can even think about the Australia game we must first get past Scotland. Two log points are what we are after, he said.

And almost without blinking an eye Australia's depature from the first round looming before the local public have been able to seriously concentrate on the event, so engrosed they have become in Munchuster whoever waddling around some city better know for its bull fights and dishy paela.

Oh hum. Answering boring questions about what happened to the second favourites is not a favourite pastime for those who have not being paying attention.

More seriously, though, the Windies were lucky: Lara winning the toss, Curtly Ambrose bowling the best spell of the tournament so far (10-0-19-1) and the bounce of the pitch continually bothering even the best of batsmen. Lara's own innings, as spicy as it was and full of the sort of strokeplay you would expect of someone allegedly world class, was curbed by tigh Kiwi bowling.

Lara even admitted that the toss had aided and abetted the West Indies cause, although it was only after 25 overs the Caribbean calypso began to beat with a more even tempo and rhythm; Clive Lloyd, the team's manager, is highly critical of the label calypso cricket.

Sure the Kiwis had to take a few chances against the West Indies bowling, and with Ambrose being bowled through his spell New Zealand were always under pressure. There no half volleyes for the Kiwi batsmen to score easy runs and the white ball did its tricks. But for Lara it was an important win.

It is always nice to get two points on the board, he said, and against a side we are likely to face in the Super Six they come in handy.

But it was important for us to bowl first and restrict New Zealand to less than 220. And they bowled well as well until the sun came out and then the pitch did flatten out a bit, he said.

Lara admitted a lot of hard work was needed (to reach peak) and that the team was learing as the tournament goes on which was equally important. Now they are looking forward to playing Scotland and once that game was out of the way planning for the outing against Australia at Old Trafford in Manchester on Sunday would start.

The Australians feel the vagaries of the white Dukes ball, along with the conditions and the toss, where teams normally asked to bat first were marginalised, had created a problem. The one exception has been South Africa who were sent in at Wantage Road, Northampton by Sri Lanka, and The Oval, by England.

This, as Steve Waugh, the Australian captain, admitted, is a tribute to their all-round strength.

There was a hung metaphor, however. Apart from themselves Group A do not have sides with the bowling strength of Pakistan and the West Indies. Lara agreed this had helped the West Indies and now the New Zealand game was out of the way there was still a lot of work to do to make the Super Sixers. There is a lot of pressure to get in the top three in each group and taking points through is so important, he said.

What should be pointed out, however, is that should Australia succumb to the West Indies as well the points will not be carried forward.

Source :: Trevor Chesterfield