TWO of the best batsmen in history – Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar – will lead opposing teams on Saturday, May 13, in a match being played to mark the opening of the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad.
The match is to be broadcast globally and will feature local, regional and international players.
Trinidad and Tobago Sports Minister Darryl Smith made the announcement on Thursday following a meeting of the Cabinet.
The stadium has been marked by controversy for more than a decade. With an initial cost, in 2006, of TT$500 million, the project had been hit by significant cost overruns.
Construction was set to be completed by June 2008 but was eventually completed in March 2017.
Lara, who turns 48 in May, played 131 Tests for the West Indies between December 1990 and December 2006 when he retired as Test cricket’s leading run scorer with 11,953 runs at an average of 52.88.
During that time he scored 34 Test centuries and 48 half centuries.
He remained the leading run scorer until Tendulkar eclipsed his mark on October 17, 2008. The Indian master played 200 Tests and scored 15, 921 runs at an average of 53.78. He scored 51 centuries and 68 half centuries.