Shivnarine Chanderpaul Upset He Did Not Retire On His Terms

Shivnarine Chanderpaul is currently plying his trade in Masters Champions League T20 cricket for Gemini Arabians but the West Indies southpaw feels he had more to offer West Indies cricket.

Seven months after being dropped from the Test squad for the series against Australia (May 2015) for his weak performance against England at home, Chanderpaul announced retirement from international cricket last month. Three days later, he applied for an NOC from West Indies Cricket Board to join the MCL.

    “It’s been great. All these guys from different part of the world are here and most of them are legends, some really good players and I am happy to play alongside them,” Chanderpaul told dna from the UAE.

The Guyana-born is not someone who spoke much but only replied to his critics with the bat. The disappointment is definitely there for him since he could not sign off in his own terms.

    “I wanted one last opportunity to play against Australia before signing off, but can’t do anything about it. Just want to put that behind. I got the NOC to play in MCL after retiring from international cricket. Having played for so long, I feel I should have been treated well. If a player (like me) is treated like that, then think how the younger generation will be treated,” he said.

    “Being treated like ordinary school boys. Nobody would come and say that you like so and so. You are always treated that way. These things will happen,” he added.

Despite being 41, Chanderpaul feels that he has it in him to play more. “I thought I could have gone on for a while, given more series and retired properly,” said the West Indian middle-order bat.

    Chanderpaul is thankful that he got the opportunities, though, to play for the West Indies over the last two decades. “It’s been a great run throughout the two decades. I am thankful for all the opportunities I got. I enjoyed playing all the formats for that long.”

Shivnarine is satisfied with the way his international career has gone. “Definitely. Probably could have been better in some areas. My career has been great since I was a school kid. Then there were things you expect from certain people but sometimes you have to put things behind and look ahead.”

Asked if he has any regrets? “I don’t know. I have always played the game with passion. I have enjoyed it. I don’t know if I have any regrets,” he said.

    Known for his unique stance and technique, Chanderpaul has an advice for youngsters – don’t imitate him. “It’s not something young players around should imitate. It is very difficult and has got a lot to do with what I did. I think you should be more side on. I was trying to balance but was falling over a lot in the beginning, hence I opened up a little bit to find balance. Younger generation should stand side on. It was something I practiced and that helped me with my balance which was good for me over the years.”

Having scored more than 11,000 runs in Tests and 8,000 in ODIs, Chanderpaul felt he hasn’t got the kind of recognition and due like his contemporaries – Brian Lara or Chris Gayle.

    “May be they are more flashy batters. I was not one of those. I try to bat as long as I can and make sure my team is in a good position. I always batted under pressure and put the team together. There was always a difficult job for me and there was a lot of pressure,” he said.
guyanapress.com