West Indian opener Stuart Williams and wicket-keeper Junior Murraywere making a comeback into the West Indian side after more than threeyears, missing 36 and 34 Tests respectively
Rajneesh Gupta16-Apr-2002West Indian opener Stuart Williams and wicket-keeper Junior Murraywere making a comeback into the West Indian side after more than threeyears, missing 36 and 34 Tests respectively.Brian Lara recorded his 10th duck in his 84th Test and 148thinnings. This was also his second duck in 15 innings against India.The only other occasion when he failed to open his account againstIndia was at Mumbai in November 1994.Carl Hooper (233) recorded his 11th hundred in his 93rd Test. Thiswas also his personal best against all countries, his previous bestbeing the 178 not out he made against Pakistan at St John’s in1992-93.Hooper’s score is the second-highest by a West Indian captainafter Clive Lloyd’s 242 not out, also made against India at Mumbai in1974-75. It was the fourth double hundred by a West Indian captain inall Tests.Hooper’s innings is the highest by any captain playing at numberfive in Test history. In fact, only one batsman has scored a doublehundred at this position while leading his side; Australia’s AllanBorder scored 200 not out against England at Leeds in 1993.Hooper’s innings is also the highest by any batsman against Indiaat number five, just moving ahead of Zimbabwean Andy Flower, whoscored 232 not out at Nagpur in 2000-01.When he reached 133, Hooper became the sixth West Indian captainto aggregate 1000 runs after Clive Lloyd (5233 runs in 74 matches),Garry Sobers (3528 in 39), Viv Richards (3068 in 50), Brian Lara (1504in 18) and Richie Richardson (1302 in 24).Shivnarine Chanderpaul scored the third hundred of his Test careerin his 52nd match. All his three centuries have come on home soil.Chanderpaul last scored a hundred in 1997-98 against England at thesame venue. This was also his personal best, passing the 137 not out,also against India, at Bridgetown in 1996-97.Chanderpaul became the 20th West Indian and 120th batsman in Testhistory to aggregate 3000 runs in a career when his score reached 66.He was playing his 52nd Test and 86th innings.The fifth-wicket partnership of 293 between Hooper and Chanderpaulis the highest partnership for this wicket by any side against India.The previous highest was 254 between Englishmen Keith Fletcher andTony Greig at Mumbai in 1972-73.The West Indies’ total of 501 was its highest against India atthis venue, bettering the previous highest of 470 achieved in 1982-83.Rahul Dravid’s 144 not out was the 10th hundred of his career of56 Tests. He became the ninth Indian and 74th batsman overall to score10 or more centuries in a career. The other Indians to achieve thisfeat are Sunil Gavaskar (34 centuries in 125 Tests), Sachin Tendulkar(28 in 92), Mohammed Azharuddin (22 in 99), Dilip Vengsarkar (17 in116 ), Gundappa Viswanath (14 in 91), Polly Umrigar (12 in 59),Mohinder Amarnath (11 in 69) and Ravi Shastri (11 in 80). It was alsoDravid’s sixth hundred in 28 away Tests.Dravid became only the second Indian batsman to score a hundred atthis ground. Sunil Gavaskar made 116 in 1970-71 and 147 not out in1982-83.Dravid’s score is the highest by an Indian at number five againstthe West Indies, bettering the 130 by Polly Umrigar at Port-of-Spainin 1952-53.The unbeaten partnership of 120 between Dravid and Sarandeep Singhwas India’s best for the eighth wicket against the West Indies,bettering the previous best of 107 runs between Yashpal Sharma andBalwinder Singh Sandhu at Kingston in 1982-83.The partnership was also the highest for the eighth wicket at thisground, beating the 99-run stand between West Indians John Holt andClifford McWatt against England in 1953-54.