England to use the Shoaib example

But he made it clear that England, who beat world champions Australia to reach the final, would have to be ready to adapt their tactics in Saturday’s final at The Oval against Lara and his side.

‘‘We can’t just say we will attack him with bouncers. We have to bowl intelligently, think on our feet out in the middle. Lara is a great player and he’s probably been hit before and it hasn’t affected him,’’ Fletcher said.

35-year-old Lara was forced from the field during West Indies’ seven-wicket victory over Pakistan on Wednesday after being struck on the side of the neck by a delivery timed at around 91 miles per hour (146.4 kph). He took several minutes to regain his feet before retiring hurt but his teammates later said he would be ready for the final.

England strike bowler Steve Harmison, who combines high bounce with express pace, peppered Lara with short deliveries in a Test series in West Indies earlier this year. England won the four-match series 3-0.

Lara was restricted to 100 runs in six innings during the opening three defeats, with a highest score of 36, before hitting back with a world-record 400 not out in the drawn final Test. ‘‘It’s been a successful approach against most sides we have played against,’’ Fletcher added. (Reuters)