Respect for Australian opponents has helped turn Shivnarine Chanderpaul into the ultimate stumbling block for Michael Clarke’s touring team in the West Indies.
Chanderpaul’s unbeaten 103 in the first Test in Barbados on Sunday was the Windies veteran’s fifth in seven Tests against Australia in the Caribbean.
He’s scored 802 runs at 89.11 in those matches.
Chanderpaul said he relished the battle against Australia’s bowlers in his own backyard, something wholly in character after building a career on immense concentration and an unflappable temperament.
“Always a tough, tough opposition and you always have to fight and it is always good to do well against them,” Chanderpaul said of the tourists.
“Against an opposition like Australia if you’re doing well against them you know the world is watching.
“When you go against them you have to bring your A-game.”
Unlike fellow 37-year-old Ricky Ponting, Chanderpaul’s spot in the Windies Test line-up has never been questioned despite his advancing years.
And he achieved a notable highlight during his knock on Sunday, becoming the highest Test run-scorer at Kensington Oval – topping a list that includes Windies greats such as Brian Lara, Viv Richards, Desmond Haynes, Clive Lloyd and Sir Garfield Sobers.
“I never expected to be the person who had the most runs at Kensington, given I’m a guy from Guyana coming to Barbados,” he said.
“To have the most runs is a hell of an achievement at Kensington.”
For Shane Watson and the rest of Australia’s bowlers the challenge now is finding a way to breach Chanderpaul in the innings that remain in their three-Test series.
“We have to find a way to be able to get him to take some type of risk,” Watson said.
“He’s done it for such a long period of time and he is a true champion so we’re going to have to bowl really well to him throughout the series to hopefully not let him have as much impact as he did today.”
Build your own fantasy cricket team and put it to the test with Draftstars daily fantasy competitions. Pick your match, pick your team and watch the points roll in to take out cash prizes on each match. What are you really gambling with? Set a deposit limit.
Three-Test spinner Matthew Kuhnemann has signed with Tasmania in a bid for red-ball game time ahead of Australia's tour of Sri Lanka next summer.…
Last week, you read about the Matt XI, a compilation of the best cricketers ever to represent the name Matt. And to be fair,…
The Aussie needed every centimetre of his height and reach to reel that one in!
Royal Challengers Bengaluru needed 21 off the final over...but after three sixes, a caught and bowled and a run out, Mitchell Starc's Kolkata had…
The Third Umpire ruled that he was standing outside his crease and the ball was dipping, making it a fair delivery - but the…
Jake Fraser-McGurk smashed the fastest 50 of the IPL season and the fastest in Delhi Capitals history. But it still wasn't enough as Sunrisers…
