Criticising the current captain, Richards said that Lara could no longer motivate the team which is a shadow of the legendary teams of the past.

West Indies were crushed by 210 runs in the first match at Lord's and have been outplayed in the second at Edgbaston, where England led by 378 runs after the third day with seven second-innings wickets in hand.

"Brian Lara must take a long, hard look at himself," former West Indies captain Richards told the BBC on Sunday.

"The side are now in a bad way and, if you have a leader who cannot motivate, you have problems.

"These guys are not focused enough. We've seen some brilliance here and there but success for an hour or two isn't going to win you any Test matches."

Richards, who resigned as West Indies' chairman of selectors in June, added that Lara's team lacked mental discipline.

"I believe these guys are not good thinkers. They need to be a little bit more focused," he said.

"We have all identified the ability factor. But if you don't think, that ability is null and void," added Richards, who scored 8,540 runs in 121 Tests, the second-highest aggregate by a West Indian after Lara.

West Indies, struggling in eighth position in the ICC Test Championship table after dominating world cricket in the 1980s, have lost 10 of their last 20 Tests.

The team's only victory in their last 11 Tests came against lowly Bangladesh in Kingston in June.