Lara is one of the game's greats

Defeats on the field came alongside controversy, including a pay dispute which delayed the start of the 1998 tour to South Africa.

After that episode Lara was sacked but reinstated before three amazing hundreds as his side drew with Australia.

The batsman heroically batted with a broken hand to make 213, 153 not-out and 100 during that series.

But the improvement could not be sustained and Lara's captaincy record also included defeats of 5-0, 6-1 and 5-0 in Test and one-day series.

In February 2000 he quit the side to spend more time with his family and his golf clubs.

Eye trouble

Despite initial plans to miss the trip to England this year he was talked into taking part and was one of the few members of the party to emerge with credit.

As the West Indies lost a series to England for the first time in 31 years, Lara confounded the critics by scoring a classic century at Old Trafford.

It came in adversity again with the batsman suffering from the eye problem Tyrigium, a condition which causes a "skin" to form over the eyeball.

The 112 scored with the aid of sunglasses rescued the team in that match, and though he was unable to repeat it, the innings confirmed that his love of the game had returned.

Lara was a controversial captain both sides of the Atlantic

The pressure increased on Lara when he was made captain in 1998.

It did not help that he had already agreed to lead Warwickshire during that summer.

Many believe he only accepted the county captaincy because he was unsure of picking up the West Indies' leadership.

But in the end he was landed with both, and tactical tricks which worked against England during the 1998 Test series failed at Edgbaston later in the year.

The hero's standing in the Caribbean meant he could survive poor results there, but the Birmingham public were less forgiving as Warwickshire endured a dreadful season.

A rumoured salary of �200,000 did not stop absences from the team and decline in the county's fortunes.

Taunts and trouble

It gave critics plenty to taunt him about, and Lara found himself being booed just three years after his starring season of 1995.

Within two more years he was to experience the same problems for his country.

In September this year he gave up a third captaincy, that of Trinidad and Tobago which he had held since 1994.

But after easing a massive amount of pressure on himself during 2000 an Indian bookmaker has cranked it up at a time when this senior batsman should be using his experience and talent to the full.