Earlier in the day, he had been run out when Marlon Samuels hit the ball to mid-on, charged off the blocks before retracing his steps. When asked if Samuels had said sorry to him after the game, Lara pursed his lips, fumbled for words, and said nothing. "It would have to be a yes, or a no. So I will leave it."

...and that incident was only part of the picture....everything about Marlon Samuels character screamed bad news....always believing he was entitled to more than he was given...

Listen, I replay that whole fugging thing over and over in my head all day....

Lara sometimes cut a slightly lonely figure on the field during his last match. There was a hug with Chris Gayle as the two crossed path when Gayle was returning to the pavilion, but only Dwyane Bravo, a fellow Trinidadian whom Lara has nurtured, demonstrated his affection enthusiastically. English players welcomed Lara with guard of honour when he came to crease, but there was no such salutations from his own team at the end of the day. On his last day at Sydney, Steve Waugh had his final parade on the shoulders of his team-mates; Lara hurried through stairs, past his team-mates, and disappeared in to the Garfield Sobers Pavillion.