Wiaan Mulder was just 34 runs short of breaking the all-time Test record of 400\* before he chose to declare the innings at lunch, missing a rare chance to etch his name in cricket history.

After declaring on himself with 33 runs remaining to tie the highest individual Test score, Mulder said Lara deserves to keep the milestone.

South Africa’s Wiaan Mulder passed up the chance to set an individual record score in men’s test cricket Monday by declaring 33 runs short of Brian Lara's 400 set in 2004. The South Africa captain was on 367 not out in the second test against Zimbabwe and within sight of Lara's longstanding benchmark.