Brian Lara names two Indian and two English batters capable of smashing his world record

Legendary West Indies cricketer Brian Lara achieved an extraordinary milestone and etched his name in history by scoring an unbeaten 400 not out in a single Test innings.

Lara's incredible feat remains untouched and far away from others' reach, even after two decades, but he predicted four players who could break his world record.

Past batters like Virender Sehwag were real threat: Brian Lara

Reflecting on his legendary record, Lara acknowledged that during his era, explosive batters like Virender Sehwag posed a threat to breaking his world record. Notably, Sehwag showcased his batting brilliance with a couple of triple centuries for India during that era.

Brian Lara was quoted as saying by The Daily Mail: “There were players in my time who challenged, or at least went past the 300-run mark—Virender Sehwag, Chris Gayle, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Sanath Jayasuriya. They were pretty aggressive players.”

Well, records are made to be broken, but Lara's 400-run record and Sachin Tendulkar's 100 centuries in international cricket look safe. However, the legendary West Indies batter named the two Indian and two England batters, who can break his world record in the future.

Brian Lara predicts Zak Crawley, Harry Brook, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill can break his world record

He believes that England’s Zak Crawley and Harry Brook and India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill have the potential to break his record for the highest individual score in an innings in Test cricket. Crawley and Brook have adopted the bold and aggressive 'Bazball' style of play, reminiscent of Lara's attacking approach during his playing day.

On the other hand, Yashasvi has emerged as a prime example of Lara’s aggressive batting style, which was evident in his stellar performance during the home Test series, scoring over 700 runs against England. The left-handed opener's ability to play marathon innings has been proven by his tally of two double centuries and a debut inning of 171 at such a young age.

Impressively, all three of Jaiswal's Test centuries have surpassed the 150-run mark, showcasing his knack for playing long innings. Comparatively, Gill has yet to reach such heights consistently in Test cricket. His highest Test score stands at 128, showing potential, but he needs more opportunities and experience to play substantial innings in red-ball cricket.

Lara signed off by saying, “How many aggressive players do you have playing today? Especially in the England team. Zak Crawley and Harry Brook. Maybe on the Indian team? Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill. If they find the right situation, the records could be broken—both of them.”

Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill are on a Zimbabwe tour

Notably, Yashasvi and Gill are both currently in Zimbabwe, representing Team India in the ongoing five-match T20I series in Harare. India lost the first match on the Zimbabwe tour but then bounced back in style, winning back-to-back matches to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match T20I series.

The Men in Blue will face Zimbabwe in the fourth T20I on July 13, followed by the fifth and final T20I on July 14 in Harare. After the Zimbabwe tour, India is scheduled to play three T20Is and three ODIs on the Sri Lanka tour, for which the squad will be announced at the end of this week.