Shivnarine Chanderpaul is our Legend of the Week, brought to you by Aquavita.
At the time where Brian Lara was the star of the Caribbean, there was a talented batsman emerging out of the shadows ready to make an impact. Chanderpaul was one of West indies’ unsung heroes of the late 90s and early 2000s, who became the rock in a team full of exciting hard hitters. His notably unique forward facing batting stance and patient approach to the game has made him one of the best batsman that West Indies have ever produced.
After scoring a half-century (62 off 163 balls) on his Test debut against England in 1994, it was quite clear that Chanderpaul was the type of batsman who takes time to get his eye in by placing the ball into gaps supporting the hard hitters around him.
Despite being known for his slow approach to the game, Chanderpaul holds the record for the sixth-fastest Test Century scoring a ton in 69 balls against Australia in 2002.
After replacing Lara as captain in the series against South Africa in 2005, the left-handed batsman celebrated his debut by becoming the second player to make a double century on his Test debut as a captain, scoring 203 not out. He went on to score 1 710 runs in 23 matches against the Proteas, racking up five centuries and eight half-centuries.
His ODI record contradicted the assumption of his slow playing style, scoring 8 778 runs in 268 matches with a strike rate of 70.74. These statistics include 11 hundreds and 59 fifties with a high score of 150 off 136 balls in a victory against South Africa in 1998-99.
Chanderpaul played 164 Test matches for his country, scoring 11 867 runs at an average of 51.37. He is 11th on the list for most Test match centuries with 30, and fifth on the list for most fifties with 52 solidifying his status as a legend of cricket.
Photo by Carl Fourie/Gallo Images
