Dubai: West Indies legend Brian Lara was left to rue the late entry of the Masters Champions League (MCL) into the world of cricket.
Lara, who arrived in the early hours of Friday before leading his Leo Lions to a 17-run victory in the MCL semi-finals over the Virgo Super Kings through his astute captaincy late on Friday, was sad that such a league had taken its own sweet time to arrive.
Chasing a modest target of 140, the injury-plagued Virgo Super Kings folded up at 122 for 9 with an injured skipper Graeme Smith leading the way for the Virgo Super Kings with 39 off 32 balls, including four boundaries and one six. None of the other batsmen got into the groove as the Leo Lions bowling clamped down on their batting.
Earlier, Lara did very little in his team’s 139 for 7 in their allotted overs. It was James Franklin’s 65 from 48 balls that propped up the Leo Lions despite Brett Lee’s burst of three wickets.
However, the former West Indies skipper was unfazed with his dip in form. “I am 46 years old now and it can be tough on the body. Had this situation arisen during my playing career then it would not have been a normal scenario for me to play immediately. I was quite spaced out. Hopefully I can get good rest during the night and we can see how best to tackle the Arabians in the final,” Lara told media at the post-match conference late on Friday.
“But the MCL has been awesome. I think it has come perhaps ten years late. I would have loved to step into something like this at the end of my playing career. It could have been an ideal transition for so many players of our era,” he added.
He was pleased all the same that the competition is a reality now. “It’s better late than never. The league is so special and at 46, it is just a privilege to be in the midst of such a group of players. Honestly, my expectations are not too high [of myself], but being in the dressing room with some of the younger guys is what this is all about, and that is what is expected of me,” Lara said.
The Leo Lions were scheduled to play the final of the MCL against the Virender Sehwag-led Gemini Arabians at the Dubai Cricket Stadium late on Saturday.
