Lara furious over hepatitis diagnosis By Tony Cozier In COLOMBO
Stabroek News
September 19, 2002

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BRIAN LARA and the West Indies team management were still waiting here last night for the results of tests to establish the cause of the illness that sent one of cricket’s most identifiable stars to hospital on Tuesday.

Team manager Ricky Skerritt said last night neither he nor Lara had received any further information from doctors at the Apollo Hospital, a sprawling, ultra-modern facility opened earlier this year to which Lara was admitted after his match-winning 111 against Kenya in the ICC Champions Trophy.

An earlier Associated Press report quoted unnamed “hospital officials” as confirming that the double world record-holder had contracted heptatitis. It did not identify the strain but stated he would require “two weeks bed rest and four week recuperation”.

But Skerritt said he had no such knowledge.

“I’ve visited Brian at the hospital today and spoken with the doctors,” Skerritt revealed. “They conducted more blood tests but were still waiting on the results to make their assessment. I’d expect that sometime tomorrow (Thursday).”

Skerritt said Lara “looked much better” than he did when admitted Tuesday after he was clearly in distress in the enervating, 35 degree heat and high humidity at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC), venue of his magnificent 221 and 130 in the third Test last November.

Lara watched television from his hospital bed as England comfortably defeated Zimbabwe in the latest match in the tournament last night and communicated with family and friends from Trinidad and elsewhere by telephone and on the internet.

He was reportedly incensed over an official International Cricket Council (ICC) media statement, quoting West Indies manager Ricky Skerritt that he had been admitted to hospital to undergo tests and that “the most likely diagnosis is hepatitis but this still has to be confirmed”.

“Brian couldn’t understand why a likely diagnosis had to be mentioned before it was even confirmed,” a friend who spoke to him on the telephone said. “Hepatitis is a scary thing and he’s had a lot of calls from family and other people who are obviously very concerned for him.”

Lara’s position was that if there was to be a media statement at all, it only needed to say that he had been taken to hospital for observation.

“All the ICC release did was fuel all sorts of speculation and fear,” the friend added. “Even if it’s proved to be nothing more serious than a heat stroke, the conjecture will go on.” If the AP report does prove correct and Lara is out of the game for six weeks, it would eliminate him from the forthcoming tour of India October 4 to 24.

It would be another setback for the left-hander and a significant blow to West Indies chances in the three Tests and seven one-day internationals.

It is the second time in nine months Lara has been incapacitated on a tour of Sri Lanka.

He dislocated and fractured his left elbow in an accidential collision with Sri Lankan fielder Marvan Atapattu during a one-day international in Kandy last December.

It put him out of action for four months, putting him out of the two Tests and three one-day internationals against Pakistan in Sharjah in February.

He is irreplacable and the selectors’ options for another batsman in the squad of 16 are limited. The likeliest contenders are opening batsmen Daren Ganga of Trinidad and Tobago and Leon Garrick of Jamaica.

The only chosen openers are Chris Gayle and Wavell Hinds, the two Jamaican left-handers.