[Watch] When Shivnarine Chanderpaul slammed Chaminda Vaas for a 4 and 6 to win a last-ball thriller for West Indies
As former West Indian captain and legendary batter Shivnarine Chanderpaul turns 50 today (August 16), it is worthwhile revisiting one of his most iconic moments in a stellar career. We turn the clock back to 2008 when the West Indies hosted a formidable Sri Lankan side for a three-match ODI series.
In the opening ODI, the Lankans scored a competitive 235/7 in 50 overs on a tacky wicket at Port of Spain. The West Indies started their reply in style at 53/0 before a customary collapse saw them become 110/4 in 28 overs.
However, Chanderpaul was not to be denied as he was at his defiant best, taking the game to the last over despite the continuous loss of wickets at the other end. The equation was down to 13 required off the final over with the legendary Chaminda Vaas set to bowl.
After the first four deliveries went for only three runs, the onus was on Chanderpaul to pull the trigger and he did. The southpaw smashed a full delivery from Vaas to the boundary followed by an extraordinary maximum over deep mid-wicket with six needed off the last ball to set off wild celebrations.
Here is a video of Shivnarine Chanderapaul's heroics off the final two deliveries to snatch victory out of the jaws of defeat:
Chanderpaul finished on 62* from 63 balls to help the West Indies grab a 1-0 lead against the 2007 ODI World Cup finalists.
The result propelled the Caribbean side to greater heights as they completed a 2-0 series win against the more-fancied Sri Lankan outfit.
Lookback on Shivnarine Chanderpaul's illustrious international career
Shivnarine Chanderpaul was among the most consistent batters across conditions in the 1990s and 2000s with his unique and inimitable stance. The now-50-year-old remains ninth all-time in the Test run-scoring charts with 11,867 runs at an incredible average of 51.37 in 164 games.
Chanderpaul wasn't too far off in ODIs, scoring over 8,700 runs at an excellent average of 41.60 in 268 outings. The Guyana-born cricketer also finished with 41 centuries and 125 half-centuries in his international career.
Despite his phenomenal individual numbers, Chanderpaul struggled as West Indies captain, winning only three out of 31 games across formats. He is also one of only 12 batters to have scored over 20,000 international runs.
The legendary batter played his final game for the West Indies in a Test match against England in 2015.