Lara glad he'll face England, not Akhtar

Brian Lara might need a few seconds to regain his nerve during Saturday's final but he will not have to face Shoaib Akhtar again.

Brian Lara might need a few seconds to regain his nerve during Saturday's Champions Trophy final against England - but at least he will not have to face Shoaib Akhtar again.

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Lara, who collapsed after being hit by an Akhtar delivery in the semi-finals, told a news conference at The Oval: "There may be a little psychological moment to get over but I'm not too perturbed about it. It was the first time I had faced Shoaib and I'm glad I won't have to do it again on Saturday! I have faced England's bowlers many times and I know what to expect.

"I was a bit dizzy, that's all. It was just a hit. I have been hit many times before. Nothing's broken. You just go straight back into the nets. It's finished, in the past."

Lara said he expected the final at The Oval to be close. "England are on a high, they've had a tremendous summer. They would expect to finish in style but we are wounded and our players are hungry," he said. "We have a long way to go to get better in the five-day game but attacking, flamboyant players can pay off in one-dayers and we have a lot of them."

"There is no thought of revenge," Lara added. "It's been good cricket. I have congratulated Michael Vaughan and his team for their cricket and their humility." When asked what the victory over Pakistan meant to Windies' cricket, Lara said: "We haven't won a major one-day trophy since 1979 and this gets us a step closer to achieving that."