Best Australian test batsmen this century

[Yoda_]

Following in the footsteps of the best australian test bowlers of this century, thought it'd be interesting to see who they thought was the best batsmen this century.

Obviously you can't go past Ricky Ponting who scored over 11,000 test runs this century at an average of 53.48.

Matt Hayden (8364 @ 52.93) the best of the openers. Langer (5994 runs @ 48.73) just behind.
Steve Smith (5796 runs @ 62.32)and Adam Voges (1485 runs @ 61.87) the best of the averages
Matt Hayden (29 fifties/29 fifties), Michael Clarke (28 hundreds/27 fifties) the best converters.

Few little anomalies for some people to consider.

Mitch Starc (23.40) has a better average with the bat than Peter Nevil (22.28)
Glenn McGrath has more runs (355 runs @ 9.34) than Glenn Maxwell (339 runs @ 26.07)


Take a look yourself at the stats book

 

[Topkent]

Ponting at his best was brilliant. Mike Hussey the slightly underrated of the players

Gilly the best to watch

 

[Wilso24]

I loved watching Hayden bully bowling attacks, but you can't go past Ponting... For now

 

[BRWB]

Steve Smith a far better player of spin than Ponting imo. Id nearly probably have Smith ahead of Punter on that basis. Clarke was ok against spin but far inferior to Ponting handling genuine pace

Punter was a liability in India against Harbajahn.

Gilly the best to watch.

 

[PhatBoy]

Smith and Ponting clearly at the top

Gilchrist and Hussey next

Gap to Hayden, Langer (better than his record IMO) and Clarke.

 

[BRWB]

Smith and Ponting clearly at the top

Gilchrist and Hussey next

Gap to Hayden, Langer (better than his record IMO) and Clarke.

agree but Id have Clarke with Hussey and Gilly

 

[lewigie]

Clarke not a better batsman than Hussey???

 

[PhatBoy]

Clarke not a better batsman than Hussey???

Hussey has a better average, they have an almost identical ratio of centuries to innings, their strike rates are virtually the same, both had a big disparity between home and away but Clarke’s is worse (averages 39 away, Hussey 41). Both have odd Achilles heels - Hussey battled against NZ, and to a lesser extent SA (averaged 39) while Clarke sucked against Bangladesh and the West Indies, and 33 over 10 tests against pakistan.

There’s not a lot between them but Hussey is slightly statistically superior IMO, and while Clarke at the peak of his powers played some fine knocks - the 160 against South Africa for starters - he made a lot of hay on some pretty flat home decks against average opposition.

Oddly, both players got to pad their stats a bit in the same innings - two of Hussey’s least consequential centuries came while Clarke was at the other end making a triple and double century

 

[Doss]

Steve Smith a far better player of spin than Ponting imo. Id nearly probably have Smith ahead of Punter on that basis. Clarke was ok against spin but far inferior to Ponting handling genuine pace

Punter was a liability in India against Harbajahn.

Gilly the best to watch.

Clarke was better than just okay against spin. He's one of the best Australian players of the turning ball that I've seen.

 

[PhatBoy]

Clarke was better than just okay against spin. He's one of the best Australian players of the turning ball that I've seen.

It’s a myth perpetuated by his debut innings imo.

He averaged 36.6 in the 4 Asian countries.

 

[damochandler]

Ponting

From the fourth test of the 01 ashes to the 2007 World Cup final. He dominated world cricket

 

[Turboman1994]

Haydos and punter get my vote Smith is rapidly closing but

 

[Sylvia Saint]

From what I can remember.

1. Smith (2013-2017) unstoppable.
2. Ponting (2002-2006). Similar if not better than Smith in that period. His batting fell off a cliff after 2007 sadly.
3. Hayden. In his prime around 2001-2003, a bully and great batsman.
4. Gilchrist, was averaging 55 plus before he too fell off a cliff in his final couple of years.
5. Clarke. Injury stopped him from climbing higher. His prime was over too fast.
6. Hussey

 

[Power Raid]

I'ld prefer to watch Gilly and thus he gets my vote

 

[Outshined]

Ponting, for the moment. Memory of his batting is probably slightly tarnished by carrying on a bit long (bar the India series in 12/13), but he was sublime in his prime.

Smith's on course to surpass him. It'll be interesting to see how he copes when he can't play solely by eye and impeccable timing.

 

[damochandler]

Steve Smith a far better player of spin than Ponting imo. Id nearly probably have Smith ahead of Punter on that basis. Clarke was ok against spin but far inferior to Ponting handling genuine pace

Punter was a liability in India against Harbajahn.

Gilly the best to watch.

He was still pretty good against murals in Sri Lanka

 

[Doss]

I reckon I'd rank them as thus:

1. Ponting
2. Smith
3. Hayden
4. Clarke
5. Gilchrist
6. Hussey
7. Langer

I'm quite prepared to accept that Smith will usurp Ponting very soon though, and I'm certainly open to swapping Hayden and Clarke.

Hussey was a super player. Looking at the list, he's probably the only one (actually Langer also) who retired when still well and truly worthy of carrying on had he wanted to.

 

[Doodlesweaver]

I'ld prefer to watch Gilly and thus he gets my vote

That high backlift was so pleasing on the eye

 

[Kyptastic]

Punter was a liability in India against Harbajahn.

If you look at the series he played in India this century (so 2001, 2004/5, 2008/9 and 2010/11), it's really only the first one that he has a shocker in India. 04/05 he only played the one test because of a thumb injury and that was the game that noone managed to score anything and Clarke took 6/9. 08/09 he scored a hundred and averaged around 40 - not great, but not terrible. In 10/11 he averaged over 50 with three scores in the 70s.

I'd say by the latter part of his career, Ponting had well and truly learned how to bat in India. As others have pointed out, he did quite well against Murali in Sri Lanka. The idea that Ponting is terrible against spin is really only based on one series - it's a myth.

The other batsman that people haven't brought up is Damien Martyn. Very very underrated, especially overseas - he averaged slightly higher overseas than he did at home and scored 9 of his 13 centuries away from home. He did it in all conditions too - England, India (averaged 55), New Zealand (61), South Africa (41) and Sri Lanka (55). Has a much better overseas record than both Hussey and Clarke, both who average about 10 runs lower than their overall averages away from home. He deserves to be right up there in the conversation of the best this century.

 

[damochandler]

If you look at the series he played in India this century (so 2001, 2004/5, 2008/9 and 2010/11), it's really only the first one that he has a shocker in India. 04/05 he only played the one test because of a thumb injury and that was the game that noone managed to score anything and Clarke took 6/9. 08/09 he scored a hundred and averaged around 40 - not great, but not terrible. In 10/11 he averaged over 50 with three scores in the 70s.

I'd say by the latter part of his career, Ponting had well and truly learned how to bat in India. As others have pointed out, he did quite well against Murali in Sri Lanka. The idea that Ponting is terrible against spin is really only based on one series - it's a myth.

The other batsman that people haven't brought up is Damien Martyn. Very very underrated, especially overseas - he averaged slightly higher overseas than he did at home and scored 9 of his 13 centuries away from home. He did it in all conditions too - England, India (averaged 55), New Zealand (61), South Africa (41) and Sri Lanka (55). Has a much better overseas record than both Hussey and Clarke, both who average about 10 runs lower than their overall averages away from home. He deserves to be right up there in the conversation of the best this century.

With Martyn it was an 18 month period where every innings he went out to bat. It looked like he wasn’t going to get out. Still can’t believe he didn’t win the 05 AB medal

 

[Doss]

Ponting also had a shocker in the 97/98 series in India from memory. Probably helped cement his poor in India reputation.

 

[damochandler]

Ponting also had a shocker in the 97/98 series in India from memory. Probably helped cement his poor in India reputation.

Everyone had a shocker that series bar the third test

 

[Kyptastic]

Ponting also had a shocker in the 97/98 series in India from memory. Probably helped cement his poor in India reputation.

And didn't do anything in the 1 off 96 test either (first time he batted at number 3). Was just focusing on this century based on the parameters of the thread.

 

[Carbine Chaos]

He obviously doesn't figure in these discussions but Voges deserves more plaudits for his efforts in the Test side. Classy player.

 

[BLERN]

M marsh has a better average that maxwell.

Clearly its due to him being a better cricketer