Roseau, Dominica – West Indies batting ace Shivnarine Chanderpaul has expressed delight at reaching the milestone of 133 Test matches – making him the most capped Test player in the history of West Indies cricket.
The 36-year-old former Windies skipper achieved the feat at the start of the Third Digicel Test match against India – the first ever Test at Windsor Park.
"This is a milestone I never dreamt of achieving, certainly not when I started playing Test cricket so it is a great honour to achieve this milestone. Throughout my long career I have always enjoyed playing the game and I love batting with a passion. That love and passion are still there and hopefully they will keep me in the game for a bit longer. Even though I am in the last part of my career I still have that hunger for success," Chanderpaul said on Wednesday.
The champion left-hander surpassed fast bowling great Courtney Walsh, who made 132 Test matches appearances. Third on the West Indies all-time list is another legend Brian Lara, who played 131 Test matches.
Chanderpaul made his Test debut as a 19-year-old against England in his native Guyana in 1994. Before Wednesday’s play he made 9 228 runs at an average of 48.56 with 22 centuries. He was named the International Cricket Council’s Cricketer of the Year in 2008 when he won the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy. He was also named Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2008.
"I would like to thank all those people who have helped me along the way to reach this point in my career. I have two major goals now. The first is to help the West Indies team start winning again and the second is to pass on some of my knowledge and experience to the young players to help them improve their game and take West Indies cricket forward."