Lara praise for Sachin

Brian Lara on Thursday said that there was a “huge gap” between Sir Donald Bradman and modern cricketers in terms of achievement but would like to see his son, if he has one, bat like Sachin Tendulkar.

Lara, in India on a personal visit, heaped praise on Tendulkar not only for the numerous records he had broken but also for his endurance.

“We have been together on tours and we have discussed batting techniques. There has been some quite straightforward appreciation. I have often picked up many of his DVDs and seen his innings. If I have a son I would like to see him bat like Sachin,” Lara said.

Lara said it was not a concern that Tendulkar, who notched up the highest ODI individual score of 200 recently, has not scored a triple in Tests.

Lara was diplomatic when asked if Tendulkar was indeed better than Bradman. “It’s unnecessary to compare players across different eras. I have watched a few tapes of Bradman and if you just consider his Test average of 99.94, there is a huge gap between him and present day batsmen,” he said.