‘Let the legends keep the big scores’: Wiaan Mulder explains why he declared on 367 instead of chasing Brian Lara’s record

South Africa’s Wiaan Mulder made headlines for his brilliant batting during the second Test against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo on Monday. The stand-in skipper scored an unbeaten 367 runs in the first innings of the game and shocked fans when he declared just 33 runs short of Brian Lara’s world record score of 400 not out in Test cricket. Mulder explains his call to declare on 367* Speaking after the day’s play to former South Africa captain Shaun Pollock on SuperSport, Mulder explained his call to declare the innings despite him being on the verge of breaking a world record. Mulder said that he thought his team had enough runs on the board to declare and that he wanted legend Brian Lara to keep his record. “Well, first things first, I thought we’ve got enough, we need to bowl. And secondly, Brian Lara is a legend, let’s be real. He got 401 [400*] or whatever it was against England. And for someone of that stature to keep that record is pretty special. I think if I get the chance again, I’d probably do the same thing. I know I was speaking to Shuks [coach Shukri Conrad],” Mulder said.