Arms folded across his chest, Brian Lara waited impatiently, watching Rahul Dravid take on the cameras with that familiar deadpan mask, trotting out the same lines that you would have heard a hundred times before.And then, Lara took over. Upfront, even brash, a little sarcastic, and definitely different. You can’t blame the exhausted Indian skipper though, considering the thousands of searching questions that he has had to survive over the last two years in a country of cricket maniacs. And you can’t blame Lara either, simply because that’s the way he is.Two captains; one a great player, the other a genius. From two cricket cultures; one loud and demanding, the other still wrapped in the glorious nuances of the game. With two different faces; one quietly confident, the other quite confident. And one dream: the World Cup.Dravid and Lara, one day to go for the World Cup. Sample this: • Asked about India’s warm-up win against the West Indies, Dravid sighed, pursed his lips: “I think it’s been a very good win for us. I think it’s something we can take a lot of confidence from. I think it was a good, professional, clinical performance. The bowlers bowled beautifully, we took some very good catches. (The win) is something that we can build on, going into the World Cup.”• Asked about his team’s collapse for 85, Lara snorted: “At least it gives us something to work on! But yes, there is a situation and it’s a bit chronic. We are prone to such collapses. But I wouldn’t say that we are down in the dumps simply because the tournament hasn’t started yet. And if you want such a performance to take place, you would want it to happen before the tournament starts.” Ever heard that before?There’s more:• Asked if the win had helped him work out the right team combination, Dravid carefully padded up: “We will have to see who is in form, who is playing well, what the combination of the team is, what the wickets are like, and the best combination that works for us in that particular game. It is nice to have some flexibility, and people who can bat in various positions for us.”• Asked if India looked unbeatable, Lara bristled: “In the last two competitions that India have played in, they haven’t reached the finals. They are beatable, there is no doubt about that. Good luck to them — if they are brimming with confidence, I am happy for them. But I have to concentrate on the West Indies team, you know, and not be too bothered about what’s happening in the periphery.” And then some:• Dravid: “There are always areas to work on. I think you are going to play some very good teams in this World Cup, some very competitive teams who are going to be improving all the time. In the practice game, we did well in most areas.”• Lara: “It was pretty transparent what took place. We did not apply ourselves out there. It had nothing to do with any plans — I am not going to sit here and be critical of any of my players.”It finally took a cheeky question the next morning on why he was backing Virender Sehwag to shake Dravid awake — his eyes flashing, breathing fire. “I am not supporting a Joe Blogs or Ramadin or something. This is a kid who’s scored 300 runs, who has done something in international cricket. I get asked these questions, and I keep wondering, is it Joe Blogs or something? I think you guys need to hang back a little and look at the situation.”But for the clincher, take this audacious assessment from Lara on the loss:“We wanted the opportunity for everyone to try and have a hit, even though we got out for 80-odd. But if you look at India, only three guys got an opportunity to bat. They didn’t get much batting practice either!”
