With Hashim Amla retired now, all the elite test batters that debuted around mid-00s have retired.
Rank them in terms of merits in tests cricket?
Younis Khan
Kevin Petersen
Michael Clarke
AB de Villiers
Hashim Amla
Alastair Cook
Mike Hussey
Discuss!
Younis Khan debuted in the year 2000, how does he fit into your criteria?
We can discuss the remaining names and I have been thinking about Hash's retirement for a while myself...it feels like the end of an era, the last of the greats who debuted this century (Steyn and AB are now gone too, Khan left earlier, Ajmal, Swann have not been around for years). I know there is talk of Wlliamson, Kohli, Root, Smith and now Babar, but the former four still have large chunks of tehir careers remaining and Babar is still in his infancy. At some stage, I may even list or at least create a criteria to rate the best players to have debuted in the 21st century but for now, these batsmen will do.
1. Kevin Pietersen - The question is, who else can be at number one? He played match winning knock after match winning knock, did to Warnie and McGrath what Tendulkar, Lara, Inzamam and co could never manage and took it to Steyn and Murali too. I think his only real kryptonite was Asif and a slower ball from Akhtar. So few batsmen have looked so imperious at their best and none moreso since Viv.
2. Hashim Amla - I was there at the Oval when Amla struck his 300, I was there when he struck a beautiful century against SL in the CT2017...there is no South African cricketer I have seen more often than Amla. His poise at the crease, his ability to adapt to every format and in particular, his importance to the side in the five day game is unparalleled. He was part of SAs greatest ever test side and for a period, their most important batsman.
3. AB de Villiers - With Amla at the top of the order, very few middle order batsmen have had the freedom to play the way AB enjoyed his entire career. It also helped that he was the greatest timer of the ball this side of Zaheer Abbas and had self belief that even Viv and KP would be envious of. AB became cricket's first true, 360 batsman, with feet as light as air and strong, robust forearms and shoulders. Few have touched his heights.
4. Alastair Cook - One of the truly great openers the game has ever seen. His serenity at the crease and selection of shots was underlined by an iron focus unlike any modern batsman. His runs were crucial, his time at the crease even more so. He shielded a plethora of top English batsmen from the new ball, from Trott, Bell and KP to Joe Root. It is impossible to imagine the golden age 09-12 without Cooky.
5. Michael Clarke - Ponting's deputy and heir apparent, he never quite lived up to those expectations but he was very good in his own right. A tough batsman, with a compact game and a solid all round ability against most attacks and on most pitches.
6. Mike Hussey - Not sure I would label him alongside these guys in tests.
