Hooper, Chanderpaul Share Bourda Glory

Having waited 15 years to score his first Test hundred on the ground where he first played club cricket, West Indies captain Carl Hooper wasted no time converting his maiden Test double century as West Indies tightened the screws at Bourda.

With GCC club-mate Shivnarine Chanderpaul at his side for most of the day, Hooper battered the hapless Indians to register a personal Test best of 233 (29x4, 3x6) as the Caribbean side finished the second day on 494 for 7.

It has always been a roller coaster love affair between Hooper and the West Indies fans but, since taking over the top job against South Africa in the 2000/01 home series, Hooper has been a model of consistency, scoring 1,090 runs (avg. 51.90) from 12 matches. On Thursday and Friday, he batted with a resiliency never before seen, punishing anything loose but digging in when the circumstances warranted.

The day also belonged the Chanderpaul, who put together a superb 140 (290 mins, 23.x4), an innings widely hailed as his best ever. The left-hander has always relished Indian bowling. Coming into this match, he averaged a healthy 65.42 in six games against the country of his foreparents and he appeared to be in a higher zone during this innings.

Dubbed 'Mr Reliable' in the early days of his career for coming through in the toughest of times, Chanderpaul has had a run of poor form lately. His career numbers are littered with 23 half centuries and only three tons, a telling statistic. When he walked out with Hooper on 57, there appeared to be a spring in his step. Today was going to be different.

It was 140 of the most assured runs of his 52 Test career. Where, in the past, he was more of a tickler and nudger, today's innings included drives and pulls. Against leggie Anil Kumble, his footwork was superb. Several times, he would chip and drive without fuss, collecting his runs with an ease that seemed, er, Hooperish.

He did survive a few throaty LBW shouts -- and a headlong slide to avoid being run out -- during the 293-run partnership with his skipper but, in many ways, today's performance was one for the ages, even if it did come against an unimaginative bowling side. The Hooper/Chanderpaul partnership was a fourth-wicket record against India, bettering the 267-run partnership between Clyde Walcott and Gerry Gomez at Delhi more than 50 years ago.

"This knock was very important for the team and also for me. Considering the bad patch I've been going through, I desperately wanted something like this to happen...When you're out of cricket because of an injury, you come back and don't get into form that quickly. It takes time," Chanderpaul said afterwards.

When Chanderpaul finally departed, fifth out with the score on 450, Hooper's team was on cruise control. Even a mild hiccup late in the day when Junior Murray fell for a duck could not wipe the look of forlorn off the face off the Indian fielders when bad light stopped play with Mahendra Nagamootoo and Merv Dillon at the wicket.

* Photo courtesy of Wisden Online.

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* Windies Cruise to Position of Strength - CricInfo


"There's something about the steely glint in Hooper's eyes peeping out of the visor-less helmet that he sports that must unsettle bowlers. It's not the dramatic, almost brutal arrogance of the swagger that Sir Vivian Richards brought out to the middle with him. It's not the cheeky, annoying smile that Javed Miandad flaunted in the face of his opponents. It's calm, cool as the moon on a clear winter evening and works for him like nothing else."

* Concentration, And The Lord - Wisden


Chanderpaul thinks simple, not believing himself to be any symbol of East Indianism in these parts. "If anybody wants to be like me, that?s good. I wouldn?t single out any race, I?m not like that."

This Was Not a One Man Show - Wisden


"Chanderpaul had suffered in the afternoon heat, taking a couple of breaks and seeking help from the physio, but he still found the energy to belt boundaries when the bowlers erred in line or length."

* Colin Croft Reflects on Day Two - BBC Sports


"Now, India, in the guise of Saurav Ganguly, Raoul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar must bat, and bat well in their first innings, in order to save the game."

* Tony Cozier Watches Batting Brilliance - Independent Sport


"Chanderpaul punched the air and knelt to kiss the pitch in a touching celebration as the 8,000 in the stands gave him a huge ovation. His previous highest score of 137 not out had come against India in the 1996-97 season in Barbados."

* Hooper and Clubmate Shine - WindiesCricket.com


"It was another fascinating day of cricket - that is if you are Guyanese or a West Indian supporter - and Hooper and Chanderpaul provided the crowd with rich entertainment for every penny they spent coming through the turnstiles of the quaint Bourda Oval nestled in the heart of this South American country's capital."

* A Photographic Gallery from Bourda - BBC Sports