NEW DELHI, India – Shivnarine Chanderpaul continued his love affair with India’s bowling, collecting his seventh hundred against them and clawing West Indies back into the first Test yesterday after they endured a shaky start.
Chanderpaul’s undefeated 111, his 24th Test hundred, took the visitors to 256 for five in their first innings at the close on the opening day at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium.
As the daylight faded, the 37-year-old left-hander swept left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha for a single through backward square leg to bring up his second straight Test hundred against India from just 144 balls.
Chanderpaul’s hundred follows his undefeated 116 in the second innings of the third Test of the West Indies’ home series against the Indians earlier this year in Dominica.
The innings ties Chanderpaul with Vivian Richards on the West Indies all-time century-makers list behind Garfield Sobers (26) and Brian Lara (34).
“This [pitch] is similar to the pitches in Guyana. It is a lot like the pitch at Albion. It is quite flat and without much bounce. I grew up playing on pitches like this back home. It took a little time to get in but after I did I could play my shots and look to put the runs on the board,” Chanderpaul said afterwards.
Chanderpaul has so far struck seven fours and two sixes from 167 balls in close to four hours of batting and drew on every ounce of his experience of a West Indies record 135 Tests to drag the visitors out of a ditch.
He shared a crucial 108-run, third-wicket stand with teenaged opener Kraigg Brathwaite and 56 – unbroken – for the sixth wicket with Carlton Baugh Jr that helped West Indies recover from 72 for three on a slow track, after they chose to bat.
Brathwaite is a noted admirer of Chanderpaul and supported his batting idol with a career-best 63 that contained four boundaries from 212 balls.
“He played really well, playing it his way which is very patient. I think he did his job,” Chanderpaul told reporters of teenager Brathwaite, who grew up idolising him.
But no other West Indies batsman reached 20, all suffering from fits and starts, as left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha grabbed three wickets for 58 runs from 29 overs and Test newcomer Ravichandran Ashwin bagged two for 79 from 25 overs.
Brathwaite and fellow rookie opener Kieran Powell steadily navigated the first 45 minutes, defying the new ball pair of Ishant Sharma and another Test newcomer Umesh Yadav, both of whom went wicketless on the day. The two young openers were made to confront spin from as early as in the 10th over and a double strike from Ojha hampered West Indies progress in the morning session.
Powell was fortunate on 14. Moving down to drive, he gave Ojha a return chance, but the bowler muffed the chance.
The West Indies left-handed opener failed to make use of the opportunity though, and Ojha trapped him lbw for 14 playing defensively forward in his next over.
Kirk Edwards brimmed with confidence, following his landmark Test against Bangladesh last week, although both Indian spinners went past his outside edge a few times.
He looked to be warming to the job, when he drove Ojha through cover for his second boundary, but two deliveries later, he gave a high return catch to the same bowler, when he moved down the pitch and tried to take the aerial route.
Left-hander Darren Bravo joined Brathwaite and carried West Indies to 69 for two at lunch with both batsmen releasing the pressure with a couple of boundaries each before the interval. (CMC)
