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SHIVNARINE Chanderpaul warmed to his task as he looked to get used to the bitter English cold again but was still a little chilly when it came to his innings of 91.
The West Indian Test star was the top-scorer in a Derbyshire first innings of 428 against Durham MCCU yesterday at the 3aaa County Ground but fell to a catch at fine leg with a 70th first-class century in his sights and that, in his eyes, was not good enough.
“Not really,” he said. “I needed to be out there longer. I didn’t bat as long as I could have
“Coming from the Caribbean, you need to get accustomed to the conditions and you have to work hard. You have to wait for run-scoring opportunities and the only way to do that is by spending time out there.
“I never intended to hit that up in the air. I was looking at fine leg because the two guys were really wide but I just swung a little too early, a little too hard and caught the bottom edge. Next time, I won’t try to smash it, just get some bat on it and get the runs.”
However, Chanderpaul has been happy with the way Derbyshire have played for most of the first two days against the students.
“It’s a good start for us. The bowlers did well and most batters got a start but it’s a shame that none of us got three figures. It would have been good for the team if one of us had got a hundred.
“Nevertheless, we have got 428 and hopefully we can build on that and get better, identify the areas where we were not good and, the next time, improve in those areas.
“The ball is going to seam in the rest of this game, so we just have to be patient. Good balls are going to be bowled and some shots might be played by the younger guys, so hopefully we will take the chances and finish the game off as soon as possible.