Date-stamped : 23 Mar95 - 14:34
No plan for Warne

There has been no orchestrated plan by West  Indies`  batsmen  to
neutralise  Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne during the current
one-day international series.

Brian Lara, the most regal of the West  Indies   bastmen,   indi-
cated  that  all  of  his  team-mates  think Warne is a top-class
bowler.

However, the Australian leg-spinner has  been   unconvincing   in
the three one-day internationals that have been contested.

"If you look at the records, they show  that   leg-spin   bowlers
are  not  successful  in one-day  cricket, " Lara said in Warne`s
defence.

Warne has captured two wickets for 171 runs off   30   overs   in
the series so far which West Indies lead 2-1.

"Our players do not think he is an easy  proposition.   I   think
everbody  respects  him," he said. "It`s one-day  cricket,  so we
will go for some runs and he may not get that  many wickets.   So
far, we have been on top.

"We know it is going to be  different  in   the   Test   matches.
We`ll  be hemmed-in by many close fielders," said the left-handed
batsman.

The series has been billed around  the   confrontation   of   the
world`s best batsmen, Lara, and the world`s top bowler, Warne.

So far it has been no contest with Lara showing  his  class  with
three scores of over 50 while Warne`s bowling has been expensive,
conceding more than 50 runs each time he has bowled.

On Sunday, Lara fulfilled a wish he has   identified   from   the
first  time  he  represented  the West Indies against Pakistan in
Pakistan five years ago. His innings of 139 was his first century
for  the  West Indies at Queen`s Park Oval, his home ground where
he honed his skills as a junior.

"It was a thrill, definitely," he beamed. "I was glad to score  a
century  in   front of my home crowd. Hopefully I can do the same
in the Test match here.  "

Lara, who holds the world record of 375 for  the   biggest   test
innings, and 501, the biggest first class score ever, added:

"I am nervous when I go out to bat,   especially   in   Trinidad.
They know that I have broken all these records and they expect me
to come and break them here too."

Source :: Agence France Presse
<END> Contributed by Ram Krishnan (rkrishna@garnet.acns.fsu.edu)