Brian Lara Recalls Calling Matthew Hayden Midnight After He Broke His Record For Highest Individual Test Score; Video

West Indies cricket legend Brian Lara has opened up about the intense pressure he felt while holding and briefly losing the record for the highest individual score. Appearing on The Overlap Cricket YouTube show, Lara discussed how his historic innings were more than just numbers. They came with a weight of expectation, national pride, and personal struggle.

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Brian Lara on congratulating Hayden for breakign record

Lara set the cricketing world alight in 1994 when he scored 375 runs against England at the Antigua Recreation Ground, setting a new record for the highest individual score in Test history. Speaking on the show, Lara reflected on the time Matthew Hayden broke his 375-run record in 2003.

Lara recalled how he first heard the news with a midnight phone call in Jamaica. He said, “It was at night. I was asleep in Jamaica. My agent, lawyer called me. He's in London. He said, I have a number for you to call. I said, why?”

“Because I think he did a lot in that day. So he might have went to sleep at one something and then he scored a couple of hundreds on that day. He said, I have a number for you to call. The private dressing room. I said, why? He said, someone just broke your record. So I called the dressing room. It was very noisy, very loud. I got to Matthew. Congratulated him. But, you know, funny enough, I felt that for that 10-year period, 9-year period, I had a lot of stress because of those two records,”.

"The records caused me stress" 😰

Brian Lara on the pressure of being cricket’s record-breaker 📚 pic.twitter.com/CbLnqT596S

— Stick to Cricket (@StickToCricket) July 15, 2025

Brian Lara reveals stress of reclaiming his reord

He further revealed about how he fought back months later to reclaim it with an unbeaten 400 against England in Antigua. Lara added revealed the mental toll it took on him during the nine-year stretch when his record stood and then was suddenly taken away. He said,“Funny enough, I felt that for that 10-year period, 9-year period, I had a lot of stress because of those two records,”

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#OnThisDay in 2004, Brian Lara slammed a record-beating 400* against England in St John's 💥

It remains the highest-ever individual score in Tests.

An extraordinary knock by an extraordinary cricketer 🙌 pic.twitter.com/eDSj9RzxFq

— ICC (@ICC) April 12, 2020

In that match century Lara's century came off 131 balls, his double off 260, and his triple century in 404 deliveries. The record-breaking moment came via a deft sweep shot off Gareth Batty, taking him past Hayden’s 380.