The shot heard around the world: Lara’s world-record 375 remembered

APRIL 18, 1994 will forever be one of the most memorable days in West Indies cricket. Brian Charles Lara had already shown glimpses of his extraordinary ability, as a year earlier he had  cracked his maiden Test hundred, a knock of 277 at Sydney Cricket Ground against Australia.

Fifteen months later, Lara broke a long-standing Test batting record held by fellow West Indian Sir Garry Sobers at the Antigua Recreation Ground against England in the fifth Test match of the series. Newsday remembers the historic moment 30 years later.

The sound of Lara’s hook shot off fast bowler Chris Lewis will be remembered by all West Indies fans as the left-handed batsman got to 369, passing Sobers’ long-standing record of 365 which stood since 1958.

Lara just had enough time to hug his teammate Shivnarine Chanderpaul when he broke the record, as scores of fans surrounded him after storming the field. The Antigua police also sprinted onto the field to protect Lara from the exuberant fans.

What made the moment more special was that Sobers was at the ground to witness the moment. When Lara was close to breaking the record, Sobers was waiting at the boundary, and the police escorted him onto the field to congratulate Lara.

With fans still on the field, Sobers hugged Lara, now a household name in world cricket.

Lara’s 375, only his third century in Test cricket at the time, came off 538 deliveries and included 45 fours. A few able teammates helped him reach the milestone, as Jimmy Adams, Keith Arthurton and Chanderpaul all played valuable innings.

West Indies were 12/2 batting first when Adams joined Lara. The pair added 179 runs for the third wicket before Adams was dismissed for 59, with the score on 191.

Lara then found another partner in Arthurton as the batsmen took the score to 374, when the latter was dismissed for 47.

Chanderpaul, a newcomer to the team, showed his quality with a knock of 75 not out, staying with Lara until he broke the record. After Lara edged an Andy Caddick delivery to wicket-keeper Jack Russell, West Indies declared on 593/5.

“It became pretty obvious early on in the (first) day there were runs for any batter willing to put their heads down and put an innings together,” Adams told Newsday. “Brian sort of just got into his stride early and pretty much the rest of us batted around him for the next two days.

"At the end of the first day, we knew, based on his rate of scoring in Test cricket at the time, that there was a possibility of something special.”

Adams said the record passing from Sobers to Lara made the day more significant.

“It was special for us in that the record was going from one West Indian to another, and we really felt excited for Brian and eventually felt happy for him when he did pass it.”

Adams also remembered Lara playing golf one morning to stay calm during the two-day innings.
“He is an early riser, and I think with all that was happening around him, he just wanted to go somewhere to clear his head. He went out on the lawns of the hotel and did some chipping and putting for a couple hours.”

Newsday columnist and former West Indies batsman Bryan Davis has known Lara since he was in his early teens.
Lara was 320 not out heading into day three of the match. Davis said he had a restless night in anticipation of the record.
“I was very excited, I did not sleep too well,” Davis said.

Lara’s cricket career began at Harvard Coaching Clinic, before he moved to Queen’s Park Cricket Club (QPCC). Davis coached Lara there and at Fatima College.

Hero’s welcome, Lara honoured

Lara, as expected, was the talk of the town: not only in Port of Spain or his hometown of Santa Cruz, but around the world.

On his return to Trinidad, thousands of people lined the streets of the East-West Corridor. Lara, with Chanderpaul at his side, was celebrated in a motorcade from Piarco International Airport to Port of Spain.

The vehicle used during the motorcade was a convertible, allowing Lara’s adoring fans to see him.

The Government, led by Prime Minister Patrick Manning, gave Lara land overlooking the Queen’s Park Savannah, where a mansion was constructed for him.

The prizes did not stop there, as Lara was given the Trinity Cross, only given to TT nationals who achieve remarkable accomplishments or whose contributions are extraordinary.

The central plaza of Independence Square in the heart of Port of Spain was renamed Brian Lara Promenade in recognition of the left-hander’s feat. A statue of Lara was built on the promenade.

Many sporting grounds have been named after the West Indies legend, including Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba. The venue has hosted international cricket and Caribbean Premier League matches and will host matches for the 2024 T20 World Cup.

Soca star SuperBlue, in recognition of Lara’s innings, wrote the song Signal to Lara, which was so popular it won the Road March title during the 1995 Carnival celebrations. In that same year, The Original De Fosto Himself wrote a song called Four Lara Four which won Panorama. Renegades, with legendary pan arranger Jit Samaroo at the helm, won the Panorama title.

Appetite for runs, records

Adams played against Lara at the regional Under-19 level when TT would face Jamaica. Adams said, “From then he was racking up big scores and like most prodigies, he made the transition to senior men’s cricket while still a teenager. He played for TT while he was still playing youth cricket, which was an early sign that he was a little better than the normal good teenager...he showed a knack for big scores as a junior, and he basically continued that throughout his career.”

Davis, who was coaching the senior team at Fatima College, started hearing talk about a talented cricketer at the school called Lara playing for one of the junior teams. Davis said he saw the ability in Lara immediately.

“We brought him when he was about 14 into the first team because he was so good.”

Lara always had his eyes on records, Davis said.
“He came to me and said, ‘Mr Davis that record score that Gary Sobers has...he made that since 1958. How come since that time nobody has broken that record?’
“I am going to break that record,” Davis quoted Lara as saying. “I said, 'Well, Brian, I hope you get the opportunity and good luck to you.' I was impressed with the way he spoke, and I realised he had a lot of ambition.”

Work ethic of a champion

Talent can only take you so far, and many world-class athletes tend to train harder than everyone else. Lara was no different.

Since school days, Davis said Lara would show he was willing to put in the hours.

“Excellent attitude (towards training). It is the kind of attitude, with skill and ability, you hope that every youngster has...with that attitude, you would go very far.”

Lara would train early in the morning before school.
“He used to come down to the (Queen’s Park) Oval early in the morning with two or three friends who would bowl to him in the nets. He would bat in the nets for an hour or sometimes more before he went to school in the morning,” Davis said.

Adams said many did not know Lara’s mentality.
“People don’t understand how driven he was to succeed and eventually go on to be one of the greats in the game. That was internal. Nobody gave him that, he brought that with him,” Adams said.

“A lot of hard work along the way as well. What you see as a result on your television is backed up by thousands of hours of work, training, batting. Like most, if not all, of the guys who succeed at that level, he had that desire for big scores and he could handle pressure well.”