Roseau (Dominica), Sep 17 (IANS): Former captain and batting star Brian Lara has warned not to expect any immediate turnaround in the West Indies fortunes.

And though the cricket icon said he was “hopeful” the side could return to the pinnacle of world cricket, he cautioned that key changes needed to occur first, reports CMC.

“I believe when changes are made infrastructure wise and administratively, it will take another five or ten years before we can even think about some semblance of the past in terms of success,” the 46-year-old said.

“I’m very hopeful as a West Indian. I applaud the guys when they win a single game because I know the stress they’ve been under and they keep being put under, as a former player.”

Despite dominating the game during the 1970s and 80s, West Indies have struggled over the last 15 years to assert themselves in world cricket.

They currently languish at number eight in Tests and number nine in One-Day Internationals, and have shown little signs of breaking into the top half of the tables.

However, in a thinly-veiled swipe at the West Indies Cricket board, Lara said the team was not being properly equipped with the best in international cricket.

“Sometimes you look at what’s on the surface and you look at what’s going on on the field and you have to have some sort of empathy with it,” said Lara, who led West Indies in 47 of his 131 Tests.

“Because I don’t believe they’re being given all the tools necessary to play cricket at the highest level and compete with the best in the world.”

Lara is considered one of the finest batsmen in the contemporary era after compiling a West Indies record 11,953 runs at an average of 52.