Friday 01, April-2005

It was a day to remember for the new-look West Indies cricket team. Wavell Wayne Hinds (right), spearheaded a fightback from the home team with an authoritative unbeaten 188 that crippled the South African bowling attack.
When he reached his hundred, Hinds, 28, was deservedly congratulated by the new man at the helm, Shiv Chanderpaul, who finished a rewarding day for the West Indies with a century of his own on his home ground at Bourda, Guyana. Nation News

by HAYDN GILL in Guyana

In six short hours, the chaos and controversy hurting West Indies’ cricket was transformed into celebration and cheer here yesterday.

Instead of grumbling over contracts and sponsorship, the talk suddenly changed to blazing bats beating ball.

After a new-look West Indies marched to 347 for three on the opening day of the first Digicel Test against South Africa before 7 000 excited fans at Bourda, many would have forgotten that this was a team missing the cream of their strength.

Wavell Hinds, the subject of much pre-match speculation in relation to a players’ strike, played the innings of his life, a career-best unbeaten 188 that didn’t suggest this was a man who wasn’t thinking about playing cricket.

“I came to Guyana with all the intentions of playing. I am playing and intend to continue this game in a very positive manner,” said Hinds, who is vice-president of the West Indies Players’ Association.

“I have my people and my country to represent and I will try to do that with distinction.”

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Friday 01, April-2005

New West Indies cricket captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul raising his hands in triumph at Bourda, Guyana, yesterday after stroking his way to his 12th Test hundred and ninth in the Caribbean.

AT BOURDA – The gloom and despondency that has hovered over West Indies’ cricket for the past month quickly disappeared here yesterday and was replaced by a wonderful spectacle that hardly anyone would have predicted.
Reduced to a string of inxperienced players and parading a side that featured a staggering ten changes from the West Indies’ last appearance in a Test match, a new-look outfit surpassed expectations on the opening day of the first Digicel Test against South Africa.

To achieve a total of 347 for three at the end of a day cut short by 8.1 overs was nothing short of a grand triumph for which no praise can be too high.

They did so on the strength of a record fourth-wicketstand of 241 between the closely-watched Wavell Hinds and new captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul.

Caribbean Cricket

Sporting islands

Speculation

Hinds, the subject ofpre-match speculation in relation to a potential players’ strike, has hardly batted with such aplomb in his five years as a Test cricketer. His unbeaten 188 off 230 balls was decorated with 30 boundaries in all directionsand most of the strokesin the book, including two wonderful sixes.

“One thing we must be cognisant of is that West Indies’ cricket is larger than all of us,” the left-hander said after his fifth Test century.

“What everyone is crying and screaming for is the common denominator in West Indies cricket. If you take that away from everything, everything else is nothing.

“Coming into the series, the onus would be on the players, not only myself, to make sure we play on the field and get some positive things on the field and erase what has been in the print media.” < Read more >

by HAYDN GILL in Guyana

IN SIX short hours, the chaos and controversy hurting West Indies’ cricket was transformed into celebration and cheer here yesterday.

Instead of grumbling over contracts and sponsorship, the talk suddenly changed to blazing bats beating ball.

After a new-look West Indies marched to 347 for three on the opening day of the first Digicel Test against South Africa before 7 000 excited fans at Bourda, many would have forgotten that this was a team missing the cream of their strength.

Wavell Hinds, the subject of much pre-match speculation in relation to a players’ strike, played the innings of his life, a career-best unbeaten 188 that didn’t suggest this was a man who wasn’t thinking about playing cricket.

“I came to Guyana with all the intentions of playing. I am playing and intend to continue this game in a very positive manner,” said Hinds, who is vice-president of the West Indies Players’ Association.

“I have my people and my country to represent and I will try to do that with distinction.”

- Saturday 02, April-2005

Shivnarine Chanderpaul has quickly wiped away the pain of the sponsor row which threatened the future of West Indies cricket with an unbeaten double-century yesterday.
It has put his team on solid ground after two days of the opening Test against South Africa in Guyana.

All of Guyana erupted in delight when Chanderpaul reached his first Test double-hundred. The 30-year-old left-hander, playing his 81st match, raised both arms in triumph on attaining the treasured milestone that took West Indies to 543 for five declared.

Compliments of the Nation News

Ten minutes after the second day of the first Digicel Test, someone from Cape Town called the media centre here to ask what the close of play position was.

When he was told West Indies had made 543 for five declared and a host of records fell by the wayside, he responded it was a poor attempt to spring an April Fool’s Day joke.

The joke is on you, the person at this end told him.

Having spent the better part of the past two days flying from the Caribbean to South Africa, the caller didn’t even know what had transpired on the opening day. When he realised this was no joke, he was left in stunned silence.

Truth be told, those of us who have watched every ball are still trying to finding it hard to believe.

For the second day running, a West Indies team, denied the cream of their batting strength because of an ongoing dispute, ground South Africa into the ground on a day when a host of significant landmarks were achieved.

The most notable was the attainment of double-centuries by new captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Wavell Hinds to provide only the second instance in 416 Test matches that two West Indians passed 200 in the same innings.

The only other occurrence was in 1958 – Garfield Sobers, with his world record unbeaten 365, and Conrad Hunte, run out for 260 against Pakistan at Sabina Park .

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• haydngill@nationnews.com