Graeme Smith vs Alastair Cook

[vandokkum]

Who is the better batsman? Graeme Smith averages 49 with 27 hundreds, with an average of 55 away from home compared to Cook who averages 46 with 25 hundreds , with an average of 50 away from home. I think even without considering the fact that Smith has had the burden of captaincy for his whole career, that's a remarkable record. South Africa have never lost a match when Smith has scored a hundred.

 

[BlackThunder]

Another one sided comparison. If you were in do or die situation the batsman you want to open for you is Smith by miles. The guy is a proven perfomer and a fighter in all conditions and to top it off a outstanding leader.

 

[vandokkum]

Another one sided comparison. If you were in do or die situation the batsman you want to open for you is Smith by miles. The guy is a proven perfomer and a fighter in all conditions and to top it off a outstanding leader.

Hardly any one talks about Smith being among the greats while delusional folks are already comparing Cook with all time greats..

 

[soso_killer]

Both are very good players. No two ways about it. Saying the debate is one sided would be delusional. However Smith is a clutch player and an out and out match winner i choose him, his record in 4th innings is remarkable.
Cook is still a very good player and walks into any XI INCLUDING that of SA

 

[96NotOut]

Both are very good, but yeah, I'd trust Smith more. The effect one series can have on a person!

 

[96NotOut]

Hardly any one talks about Smith being among the greats while delusional folks are already comparing Cook with all time greats..

Because Cook's younger, and their above given stats are pretty similar.

 

[Hitman]

Graeme Smith, 8 days a week.

 

[Red Devil]

Smith

 

[sachjinn]

Cook's last 3 years have been phenomenal. But for sheer consistency over a decade, it's got to be Smith.

On a side note, have always and still rate Smith above Kallis.

 

[Marshland]

Of course it's gotta be the kid who is second only to Bradman.

 

[sachjinn]

Of course it's gotta be the kid who is second only to Bradman.

Good lord. These blind worshipers will bring into all unrelated threads .

 

[Robert]

On a side note, have always and still rate Smith above Kallis.

Definitely.

I would put Biff above Chef due to the clutch factor.

I was impressed out how, when he realised that ENG exposed his technical weakness to the awayswinging ball outside off, he changed his game and ignored those deliveries. ENG were forced to bowl at his stumps, then he picked them off.

 

[Amjid Javed]

Graeme smith, bit of a no-brainer this one!

 

[Bilal7]

Don't know who's better but both are pretty awful to watch.

 

[amax]

Cook is a very good players but Smith wins easily, smith is master of playing big impact innings, recent 200 against Pak was special. Smith will go down as a genuine great opener (applying strict criteria for greatness).

 

[Scrolln]

As of now, it is Smith.

Although i believe Cook will end his career with a better record.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Graeme Smith easily. Cook has been really poor for quite sometime now. . He never looks comfortable early in his innings but then really goes after the bowling. A SR of 60 is phenomenal for an opener. Also works his way around weaknesses efficiently. ATG imo.

 

[Justcrazy]

Cook looks more consistent , but i would prefer Smith

 

[saj786]

Both r tough players mentally, which papers hugh technical issues

 

[Robert]

You'd have him opening with Barry Richards in the Saffer ATG side.

Richards
Smith (c)
Kirsten G
Pollock G
Kallis
ABDV
Boucher (w)
Pollock S
Steyn
Donald
Adams?

Dunno if you ever need a spinner with that fast attack. You might as well get Peter Pollock and go all-pace.

 

[Jo_Don]

You'd have him opening with Barry Richards in the Saffer ATG side.

Richards
Smith (c)
Kirsten G
Pollock G
Kallis
ABDV
Boucher (w)
Pollock S
Steyn
Donald
Adams?

Dunno if you ever need a spinner with that fast attack. You might as well get Peter Pollock and go all-pace.

I'd go all pace and have Mike Proctor (Test average of 15 and FC average of 19) in for the spinner. And he could bat too (48 FC 100s, average of 36). Could have been one of the best ever all rounders.

 

[Buffet]

You'd have him opening with Barry Richards in the Saffer ATG side.

Richards
Smith (c)
Kirsten G
Pollock G
Kallis
ABDV
Boucher (w)
Pollock S
Steyn
Donald
Adams?

Dunno if you ever need a spinner with that fast attack. You might as well get Peter Pollock and go all-pace.

This will be my all time SA XI.

• Barry Richards -- One of the finest talents of the 20th century
• Graeme Smith * -- More familiar name for younger fans
• Jacques Kallis -- One of the finest all rounder of all time.
• Graeme Pollock -- Voted in 1999 as South Africa's Cricketer of the 20th Century
• Dudley Nourse -- A gun batsman and best for 15 years in SA. 9 centuries in 34 tests, avg 53.xx
• Aubrey Faulkner -- One of the greatest all rounders of his era.
• Mike Procter -- One of the most natural talented all rounders in world cricket
• John Waite + -- An outstanding wicketkeeper-batsman. The first SAcan to play 50 Tests.
• Dale Steyn --- Will go down as an ATG bowler.
• Hugh Tayfield -- One of the greatest off-spinners in cricket. 170 wickets at 25.xx
• Allan Donald -- ATG fast bowler.

12th man - Shaun Pollock

Many all rounders but SA probably has produced too many quality all rounders when compared to any other country.

 

[battler]

This will be my all time SA XI.

• Barry Richards -- One of the finest talents of the 20th century
• Graeme Smith * -- More familiar name for younger fans
• Jacques Kallis -- One of the finest all rounder of all time.
• Graeme Pollock -- Voted in 1999 as South Africa's Cricketer of the 20th Century
• Dudley Nourse -- A gun batsman and best for 15 years in SA. 9 centuries in 34 tests, avg 53.xx
• Aubrey Faulkner -- One of the greatest all rounders of his era.
• Mike Procter -- One of the most natural talented all rounders in world cricket
• John Waite + -- An outstanding wicketkeeper-batsman. The first SAcan to play 50 Tests.
• Dale Steyn --- Will go down as an ATG bowler.
• Hugh Tayfield -- One of the greatest off-spinners in cricket. 170 wickets at 25.xx
• Allan Donald -- ATG fast bowler.

12th man - Shaun Pollock

Many all rounders but SA probably has produced too many quality all rounders when compared to any other country.

Will have AB devilliers as keeper bat over john waite.

 

[Buffet]

Will have AB devilliers as keeper bat over john waite.

Obviously, I haven't see Waite but by all accounts he was a great keeper and used to take outstanding catches. Comfortable against slow and fast bowlers.

AB will also make a very good choice due to his batting being lot better. By the end of his career , he many even have a case to play as purely a batsman.

 

[Haroon786]

Obviously, I haven't see Waite but by all accounts he was a great keeper and used to take outstanding catches. Comfortable against slow and fast bowlers.

AB will also make a very good choice due to his batting being lot better. By the end of his career , he many even have a case to play as purely a batsman.

You haven't seen him, but yet claim this.

 

[IMMY69]

you'd have him opening with barry richards in the saffer atg side.

Richards
smith (c)
kirsten g
pollock g
kallis
abdv
boucher (w)
pollock s
steyn
donald
adams?

Dunno if you ever need a spinner with that fast attack. You might as well get peter pollock and go all-pace.

clive edward butler rice??

 

[test_fan]

Technically probably Cook is better but Smith has better Temperament which gives him the edge.

 

[Buffet]

You haven't seen him, but yet claim this.

I didn't claim this. I said by 'by all accounts'.

 

[leatherface58]

Re: Graeme Smith vs Alistair Cook

I don't know why Barry Richards is regarded as such a great batsman that he makes all time lists. Sure he performed well. But they were a measly 4 in number. Could have easily faded away. Can't consider him as a great.

A counter example would be Dale Steyn who if he had never played after 10 odd tests would have been regarded as a wasted talent but look at him now. Time does strange things.

 

[Buffet]

I don't know why Barry Richards is regarded as such a great batsman that he makes all time lists. Sure he performed well. But they were a measly 4 in number. Could have easily faded away. Can't consider him as a great.

I don't think he gets rated high only due to those 4 tests.

Sure, many will be right in saying that if you have not played even 25-30 tests then it doesn't matter how good you were outside of international matches.

 

[Haroon786]

I didn't claim this. I said by 'by all accounts'.

OK, apologies for my ignorance.

 

[Buffet]

OK, apologies for my ignorance.

Arr, you didn't say anything offensive and no need to offer apologies for simple oversights. We all make that mistake time to time.

 

[Mamoon]

Smith for now, but Cook will surpass him.

 

[Haroon786]

Arr, you didn't say anything offensive and no need to offer apologies for simple oversights. We all make that mistake time to time.

No worries.

Anyway, ATM, of course Smith is ahead right now, gun player, the amount of clutch innings he has played is second to none, unbelievable stat that when he hits a ton, SA never lose, however Cook has the potential to surpass Smith and Gavaskar to become the greatest ever opener.

 

[Robert]

[*]Hugh Tayfield -- One of the greatest off-spinners in cricket. 170 wickets at 25.xx

Oh aye, forgot about him.....

clive edward butler rice??

I have huge respect for Ricey. He and Hadlee made a top double act for Notts in the 1980s. I don't know how he would have gone in test cricket though I suspect very well.

Another one of that wonderful 'lost generation' of Saffers......

 

[Buffet]

Cook has the potential to surpass Smith and Gavaskar to become the greatest ever opener.

Cook struggles against good bowlers too often to make that kind of jump.

 

[Robert]

I'd go all pace and have Mike Proctor (Test average of 15 and FC average of 19) in for the spinner. And he could bat too (48 FC 100s, average of 36). Could have been one of the best ever all rounders.

Qualified for England too

 

[Haroon786]

I am not so sure about it. Cook struggles against good bowlers too often to make that kind of jump.

He does have an away record of 50, he also got a ton against Steyn in the 2012 home series against SA. In 2013 he struggled, but he is bound to get back into form.

 

[Mamoon]

You can't become the greatest of all time if you can't impose yourself on the bowlers in any capacity.

Cook is an accumulator. Averages alone won't do.

For the very same reason, Amla can't go down as the best ODI opener of all time regardless of what his average is.

 

[Buffet]

He does have an away record of 50, he also got a ton against Steyn in the 2012 home series against SA. In 2013 he struggled, but he is bound to get back into form.

He is a very good opener and has played fantastic cricket for his side in India and previous tour of Aus but I wasn't talking about his form. I have followed his career reasonably well. See how well he has done whenever he faced good bowlers.

I don't expect him to perform against good and average bowlers in the same fashion but gap is a big one for him to become the best opener if he continues the same path. Surely, I can see him even surpassing SRT's tons/runs but that's a different thing.

 

[Haroon786]

He is a very good opener and has played fantastic cricket for his side in India and previous tour of Aus but I wasn't talking about his form. I have followed his career reasonably well. See how well he has done whenever he faced good bowlers.

I don't expect him to perform against good and average bowlers in the same fashion but gap is a big one for him to become the best opener if he continues the same path. Surely, I can see him even surpassing SRT's tons/runs but that's a different thing.

I comprehend what you mean, but players like the type you envisage of being great are very rare and usually tend to be the best of the best, such as SRT and IK, in this regard, I think Cook will have more of a Dravid, Kallis type legacy, someone with big runs at a good average but lacks the consistency of the very best.

 

[zubair007]

You can't become the greatest of all time if you can't impose yourself on the bowlers in any capacity.

Cook is an accumulator. Averages alone won't do.

For the very same reason, Amla can't go down as the best ODI opener of all time regardless of what his average is.

I digress. An average of over 53 combined with a strike rate of 90+ (which incidently is higher than Tendulkar) makes him the prime candidate to greatness, if he keeps this up. Imposing does not always mean 4's and 6's, it could also mean scoring through running between the wickets and breaking the bowlers' rhythm.

 

[Badsha]

Greame Smith

 

[Majestic]

Graeme Smith vs Alastair Cook - Better Test batsman?

Two of the best openers post 2000s. While Smith was a far better captain without any shadow of doubt, who do you think was the better batsmen?

 

[jnaveen1980]

Both boring to watch lol Seriously i doubt if anyone would have idolized these guys. Imagine a kid saying "I want to be a batting genius like Alistair cook" lol

 

[Saksham]

Honestly this is a very tough one . Both of them have been brilliant for their respective teams . The only difference is Cook is still playing while Smith played his last test match in 2014 . Smith has a superior record in England, New Zealand, South Africa and West Indies while Cook has a better record in Australia, India, Sri Lanka and UAE . Both Cook and Smith believe in grinding the opposition . So its a tough call . During the entire career of Smith he was at his peak during 2002 - 2005 and 2010 - 2013 . Cook was at his peak from 2009 - 2012 .
Better Batsman against Spin = Cook
Better Batsman against Swing = Smith
Better Batsman against Fast Bowling = Probably None .

 

[UN talkz]

Smith

 

[Ab Fan]

As a test batsmen, Smith is ahead.

As an overall cricketer across all formats, Smith is well ahead.

 

[Princejain191]

Smith - can score consistently against the best bowling attacks of the opposition. Cook, although a great himself, scored in India and Australia when they had their worst attacks this decade. Failed otherwise. And Cook has averaged less than 30 I think in 70-80% of the Ashes series he has played in. And this completely negates for me the perception that Cook is one of the mentally toughest batsman in this generation. Fails too often against good attacks. Smith was a true grafter.

I'd choose Smith.

 

[barah_admi]

I'm going to say Smith, although both were truly great opening batsmen and seem to be the last of a breed of test opener who could grind out the opposition. And I say this as a massive Cook fan, a guy, when on song, could play some of the most elegant drives ever played by left handers. However, he was never as good of an ODI batsman, not even close actually, to Smith, who is a cross format great, the highest accolade that can be given to any cricketer.

However, if one was to make an XI of the best of the 21st century, they may both make the starting XI, with Hayden and Warner being their competition.

 

[Fahdi]

Smith by a mile.

 

[The_Odd_One]

No contest, Smith

 

[Protea Fan]

Smith easily,cook has too many holes as a batsman

Bw both don't have any charisma and are pretty hard to watch for me

 

[Protea Fan]

Honestly this is a very tough one . Both of them have been brilliant for their respective teams . The only difference is Cook is still playing while Smith played his last test match in 2014 . Smith has a superior record in England, New Zealand, South Africa and West Indies while Cook has a better record in Australia, India, Sri Lanka and UAE . Both Cook and Smith believe in grinding the opposition . So its a tough call . During the entire career of Smith he was at his peak during 2002 - 2005 and 2010 - 2013 . Cook was at his peak from 2009 - 2012 .
Better Batsman against Spin = Cook
Better Batsman against Swing = Smith
Better Batsman against Fast Bowling = Probably None .

Against quality fast bowlers cook is a walking wicket,smith is far better than that

 

[RainMan_]

Cook is more elegant. Smith didn't have a strong off side game and frankly speaking, his batting was quite ugly to watch.

 

[Mr.Q]

I don't think there is a huge difference between the two in terms of talent. But yes, Smith was a better batsman and was much more intelligent as a player. But don't judge Cook based on his recent performances alone. And Smith too had some flaws in his technique. He had an issue negotiating inswingers bowled by left armers. This flaw was exploited by Zaheer Khan quite well.

 

[Hasan123]

Graeme Smith by a long way.

 

[springbok]

Graeme Smith was a ugly batter but always performed. Just like Elgar , ugly but gets the job done

 

[Robert]

Smith. Better against good quicks and always clutch. Better than Kallis for the latter reason.

He had trouble against Hoggard swinging it away from him and the Yorkshireman got him out for s string of low scores, but he worked hard and overcame that.

 

[wrongun]

Smith could be considered for a last 40 years atg XI as an opener.

Cook would never be in that conversation.

That says it all really. Smith was ugly to watch but he really got the job done when it mattered & even with a "flawed" technique he could think a situation through & find a way to survive & score.

 

[Abdul]

Cook.

 

[Ab Fan]

Among openers post 2000s:

Smith
Hayden
Cook