Before the tour began, the highest individual run scorer in tests - he broke his own countryman Sir Garfield Sobers' record when he minced the England attack to write the record books and then later rubbed the Durham bowlers to run up 500 odd runs to become the highest scorer in first class cricket in a county game for Warwickshire, promising big things.
CRUMBLING
But sad to say he is just a ghost of the big scoring Lara that everyone had come to know. In the run up games, the one-day series and the two tests, he has failed to get going and when he is dismissed, the Windies batting starts crumbling.
The Windies batting would have been in further quicksand if not for the rear guard knocks of opener Sherwin Campbell the reliable and experienced Carl Hooper and the consistent Shivnaraine Chanderpaul.
It is said that when a batsman is in poor form, tthe curse follows him like a plague. It is no different with the dashing Lara. Every great batsman goes through this nightmare.
PUT TO THE SWORD
But Lara can take heart in the fact that things will not continue to go bad, but will soon fall into place. With several one-dayers and three tests to go, Lara is going to come good and when that happens, the Aussie and Pakistan bowlers are going to be put to the sword with runs cascading from this stylish left hander bat.
Lara has had a bit of bad luck too. In the Second Test the catch taken by wicket keeper Ian Healy was questionable. Then when he seemed to be settling in for a big score against, Victoria he was given out in a controversial manner.
The West Indies failing in Australia is also blamed on Lara's poor form. One hopes that when Lara strikes, the Windies too will fight back and give the Aussies a good run.
INTERESTING
What is interesting in Brian Lara's approach to batting is that he gives the bowler a chance of getting him out too. He is not a stonewaller. He likes to give the ball a tonk at every opportunity.
He is a firm believer in the theory that the ball is meant to be hit and not to be caressed. He is too adventurous and this is what has proved his undoing. If he can tighten his defence and pick the right ball to hit, it will do his game a lot of good. But then aggression is the hallmark of Lara's batting.
While Brian Lara is in the news for his failures, a bowler making big news for his phenomenal success with the ball is the 'sheik of tweak', the marvellous spinning sensation Shane Warne.
Warne missed tours of Sri Lanka for the Singer Tourney and then pulled out of the Indian sector for the Titan Cup and the one-off test because of an operation on his spinning finger.
DESTRUCTION
His recovery after the operation was rather slow and there were doubts whether he would be fit to put on show his spin magic against the Windies. But for the benefit of Australian cricket he has recovered quickly and is once again among the wickets and continuing his destruction of opposing batsman.
Warne is a match winner on any day. With his wide ranging repertoire of deliveries he is always having the batsmen guessing and it is not all batsmen who are able to read him and get on top of him.
PRODIGIOUS SPIN
In his wicket taking spree, he has the ability to use the bowlers footmarks to great advantage and make ball spin prodigiously, at times even at right angles which has the batsmen in a flat spin.
Many batsmen try to use the pad than the bat to counter Warne when he is pegging at the footmarks. But Warne has the knack of persisting and luring the batsmen to their demise.
The best way to counter his spin is to use the feet. But unfortunately none of the batsmen fronting up to him are able to do this. Until the fearless batsmen who can use their feet come along, Warne is going to be king.