Lara even claimed that the cricketer himself wasn't aware of his greatness.
West Indies legend Brian Lara in his book ‘Lara: The England Chronicles’, opened up about the best player he has witnessed playing the sport.
Lara drew parallels with himself and Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar and stated that even they both don’t match the talent of the West Indies great.
Recounting memories from an eventful tour of England in 1991, Lara named former Windies skipper Carl Hooper so as to claim that he himself wasn’t aware of his greatness.
In one specific extract, Lara wrote, “He was so talented, yet he didn’t understand just how good he was. Carl was easily one of the best players I’ve ever seen. I would say that not even Tendulkar and myself would come close to that talent. Separate Carl’s career from playing to captaining and his numbers are very different. As a captain he averaged near to 50, so he enjoyed the responsibility.”
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Known for his effortless elegance with both bat and ball, Carl Hooper was among the most naturally gifted yet inconsistent players in cricket history. Hooper began his career with a flourish, scoring a century in his second match against India. However, over his 15-year career, he often failed to consistently meet his full potential, despite the high praise he received from peers such as Steve Waugh and Shane Warne, who considered him one of the best players of the 1990s.
Hooper was the first cricketer in the world to achieve the milestones of 5,000 runs, 100 wickets, 100 catches, and 100 caps in both ODIs and Tests, a record later matched by South African great Jacques Kallis.
After coming out of retirement, Hooper captained the West Indies, a role in which he excelled, averaging over 50 as captain. However, following a disappointing performance at the 2003 World Cup, he was replaced by Brian Lara.
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