Dubai: Disappointed that Shivnarine Chanderpaul did not get a "proper send-off", West Indian batting legend Brian Lara has said that the people in his country don't even understand the recently-retired veteran's contribution to Caribbean cricket.
Lara hailed Chanderpaul as one of the "giants of West Indies cricket" and expressed his displeasure at the fact that he was not accorded a proper farewell after announcing his retirement a few days ago.
Shiv, who played since 1994, had a tremendous career. I started with Shiv in Guyana and remember his first Test match against England," Lara was quoted as saying by the media here.
"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," he added.
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Chanderpaul notched up 11,867 runs from 164 Tests at an average of 51, scoring 30 centuries in the process. In ODIs, Chanderpaul made 8,778 runs from 268 matches at an average of 41.
I was very disappointed that Shiv was not allowed a couple of more Test matches, not necessarily to break the record but to have a proper send-off. Something I think he is very disappointed (about) and unfortunately that did not happen," Lara said.
Chanderpaul was dropped from the West Indian team last year after a string of poor scores. "He has been a great servant for West Indies cricket and he has done some tremendous things throughout his career, and credit must be given to the man for how he has played," Lara said.
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"When I do have the opportunity to give him a call and thank him, I will because for me he was one of the giants of West Indies cricket," he added.
