LARA REACHES 1,000 BOUNDARIES

Jaipur: West Indies skipper and batting genius Brian Lara may have scored only nine runs in his team's stupendous victory over South Africa in the ICC Champions Trophy 2006, but he reached a significant milestone as well.

Lara became only the fourth player in ODI history to hit one thousand boundaries in one-day cricket.

Sachin Tendulkar of India is on top of the pile, with more than 1,500 boundaries to his credit, followed by Sri Lankan pocket dymano Sanath Jayasuriya. The third place is occupied by that maverick from Australia -- Adam Gilchrist -- and now Lara has entered this club.

However, knowing Lara, he was not at all perturbed or elated by this development. He knows he is in the winter of his career and would announce his retirement after the 2007 World Cup.

For Lara, team goals are most important and his batting is not his priority number one.