BASSETERRE – Veteran West Indies left-hander Shiv Chanderpaul says one of his main career goals now is to use his vast experience to help develop the new generation of batsmen.
Chanderpaul, who turned 40 two weeks ago, is in the twilight of an illustrious career that has seen him accumulate 11 414 runs from a record 156 Tests.
He believes his two decades in international cricket has equipped him to be a mentor to younger players.
“There are some goals I want to achieve and hopefully I can get there. But I want to help the young guys in the team and wherever I go I want to help as much as I can,” Chanderpaul said.
“There are a lot of young fellas out there who, when they are batting, they make a lot of mistakes and you try to help as much as you can.
“You have so many experiences over the years – you experience a lot just playing – so it is easier for me to pick up things but the younger fellas are not going to realise what they are doing wrong sometimes.
“So you try to help as much as you can in pointing out their mistakes … but pointing out is not all because you have to help them to correct their mistakes. These are some of the things I’m hoping to do for the younger fellas.”
Chanderpaul lies second on the West Indies list of all-time Test run-scorers, and will be looking to add to his tally when he lines up against Bangladesh in the first Test of the two-match series at Arnos Vale in St Vincent starting on Friday.
Chanderpaul is turning out for St Kitts in the three-day tour match against Bangladesh, as he vies for batting practice ahead of the series.
He has not played competitive cricket now for almost a month, since ending his stint with Derbyshire in the English County Championship.
“I left England since the end of July and I’ve been in Guyana, so I’ve been looking forward to getting some practice. Hopefully I can get enough batting in this game and that it helps in the Test series.”
Despite his age, Chanderpaul’s powers are yet to decline. He has averaged 55 over the last year which has helped to keep his career average at 51.
The last time he faced Bangladesh in a Test series, two years ago, he hit an unbeaten double hundred in the first Test in Dhaka and an unbeaten hundred in the second Test at Khulna. (CMC)
