“Like so many things, it is not what’s outside, but what’s inside that counts” – Aladdin
Looking at that batting stance, none can say he is a legendary batter. It’s crabby, unconventional, and only accepted by some. Definitely, this isn’t justifiable in a country like India, where head-to-toe about batting is a leaf taken out of the coaching books.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul has over 11000 runs at an average of 50+ in Tests and over 8000 runs at an average of 41 in ODIs. His average in the ODIs is better than Brian Charles Lara’s. He is the second-highest run-scorer for West Indies across the three formats. He has 166 scores of 50+ (50s – 125, 100s – 41), the most for them. How can someone not call him a legend?
In spite of these staggering numbers, the left-handed batsman from Guyana hardly gets recognition. I can prove it. Close your eyes and think about West Indian great batters. Chanderpaul is the last batter, one would imagine. Why is it that way?
First, he didn’t possess the glitz of Viv Richards, nor did he have Lara’s elegance. He wasn’t aggressive like Chris Gayle. But, none of these batters had the grit that Chanderpaul possessed.
His national call-up was bound to happen after a scintillating first-class season. His FC debut came in the 1991/92 season of the Red Stripe Cup, where he played only two matches. In the following season, he failed to impress.
However, his break came during the Youth tour to England in 1993. In his first match, he smashed a double-century (203) when no other batter crossed the 40-run mark. In the remaining three innings, he went on to amass 169 runs. In the four-match U-19 Test series, he piled up 372 runs at an average of 124.
With confidence behind him, the left-hander was a different batter in the 1993/94 season. He scored 389 runs while averaging 55.6. Chanderpaul was the fourth-highest run-getter that season.
The Guyanese cricketer made his international debut against England in the second Test in 1994. He was just 19 years back then.
Two words that affiliate with Chanderpaul’s Test career – grit and a late bloomer. While his Test career strike rate of 43.3 justifies his grit, his immaculate success post 100 Tests accounts for his late blooming.
Despite starting with four half-centuries in his first four Tests, it took him 19 matches to register his first Test century. Let alone the centuries. There was a time when his career was going nowhere. Plagued by inconsistency, Chanderpaul’s average dipped to 39.2 after his first 50 matches. Honestly speaking, he would have been the backup with a mediocre average like that after 50 Tests in some countries.
As mentioned, Chanderpaul was an opsimath in his playing days. He started to pick up gradually. In between 51-100 Tests, the left-hander scored over 3000 runs at an average of 49.8. He had only two centuries in his first 50 Tests compared to 12 in his next 50. Overall, the southpaw averaged 44.5 after his first 100 Tests.
A different batter after 100 Tests
If we compare his numbers with some legendary batters in the first 100 matches, Chanderpaul was the least impressive. But his transformation in his last 64 Tests still remains unparalleled.
In Tests, 21 batters (top seven) have scored 5500+ runs after playing 120+ Test matches. Among those, Chanderpaul’s average of 44.5 in the first 100 Tests is the fourth-lowest. Only VVS Laxman (13) and Mark Boucher (4) had fewer centuries than Chanderpaul (14).
Generally, batters in their first 100 matches are always on the top. Only seven batters averaging less than 50 out of the 21, is a testimony of it.
However said, batters tend to mellow down after 100 Tests. Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Sir Alastair Cook, Mahela Jayawardene, and many more had an average of 50+ in their first 100, but none maintained it after it (not considering their overall average).
This is where Chanderpaul was at his absolute best. After 100 Tests, only five batters maintained an average of 50+ compared to 14 in the first 100. Among the five, Chanderpaul’s 63.9 is the best – from 44.5 in the first 100 to 63.9 in the last 64 Tests. Chanderpaul had a 43.5% hike on his average after 100 Tests.
Phew! That’s massive.
No other batter from this troupe had a raise above 11%.
Shiv became grittier post-100 Tests. He was getting dismissed every 118.6 balls in his first 100 compared to 145.4 in his last 64. Again, his balls/dismissal ratio was the best among the 21.
Still, it makes you wonder. Do the runs he scored count as legendary only if it comes in a win? Logically it might, but put yourself in the shoes of Chanderpaul and imagine you are batting flawlessly at one end, and wickets are falling in heaps at the other.
In Tests from 2000 to 2015, Chanderpaul averaged less than 35 thrice in a calendar year. The other top seven batters have suffered this eight times in 15 years. Surprisingly, in those eight years where others have averaged below 35, Chanderpaul averaged above 40 in seven and above 50 in six. Period!
5370 out of 11867 runs have come in defeats for Chanderpaul, constituting up to 45% of his runs. Unfortunately, those runs are also the most for a batter in Tests to date. He is followed by his partner Lara (5316).
An interesting fact: Chanderpaul has remained not out in 19 innings in losses, which is the most for any batter; the next best is nine. In those 19, he has scored 30+ in all, 50-99 in nine innings, and five centuries.
To elaborate more, in seven consecutive innings (across five matches) from November 2006 to December 2007, Chanderpaul had hit 50+ scores. These are the joint-most successive 50+ scores hit by a batter in Tests. One came in a draw, one in a win, and the other three in loss.
To his agony, even his retirement was bitter. Following a below-par year in 2015, Clive Lloyd, the then-selector, wrote to Chanderpaul that they had decided to move on. “You have been a great player for the West Indies and have given excellent service to the game and West Indies supporters worldwide,” Lloyd added. “We hope your skills will be utilized in the future, and we wish you all the best.”
The Guyana cricket board even expressed its grief following the snub. “Our board just cannot believe nor even fathom the thought process behind the wanton dropping of the most senior, reliable, and dependable batsman of the West Indies for the past 21 years,” they said. “Is this how the selectors intend to treat our esteemed cricketers after more than two decades of service to the people of West Indies cricket?”.
The great Lara also felt that the West Indies board could have handled the situation better. “I was very disappointed that Shiv was not allowed a couple more Test matches, not necessarily to break the record but to have a proper send-off. I think he is very disappointed, and unfortunately, that did not happen,” Lara said.”That guy with the most Test matches for the West Indies, playing for over 20 years, I don’t think people in the West Indies understand exactly his contribution.”
For us, Chanderpaul will always be remembered as the batter who showed that there is life outside the coaching manuals.
