Younis Khan vs Smith/Kohli/Root/Williamson

[stevewittry]

As Younis Khan is all set to bat for his last series, it would be interesting to see how posters in this forum rate him compared to the Fab-4 test batsmen of this generation.

While comparisons of this nature are subjective and based on personal prejudices, it would be worthwhile to rate him on 4 parameters- technique against pace/spin bowling, adaptability to different conditions, temperament and specifically ability to handle pressure.

Below are my assessment on these parameters -

Spin bowling technique -

Younis > Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Root

Pace bowling:

Williamson > Smith > Younis > Root > Kohli

Temperament:

Smith > Younis > Williamson > Root > Kohli

Pressure situations:

Younis > Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Root

OVERALL:

Younis > Smith > Williamson > Root > Kohli

 

[kukkad kamaal]

Nice thread

 

[santos11]

All these Fab 4 would go past YK as an overall batsman in a few years.

 

[Sachin136]

Kohli has multiple centuries in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. He is better against pacers than Younis, Root and Williamson.

Root has a major issue converting his 50s. I don't know how he has a better temperament than Kohli.

 

[Hasan123]

Younis is the worst player out of the 5 when facing pace.

All 4 will surpass Younis.

 

[czar]

Smith is already a better batsman than YK imo as he can bat in Asia as well as pace conditions, unlike YK who was a champion in UAE.

Kohli scored tons for fun in Australia and SA, I will take him over YK outside Asia too.

 

[stevewittry]

Kohli has multiple centuries in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. He is better against pacers than Younis, Root and Williamson.

Root has a major issue converting his 50s. I don't know how he has a better temperament than Kohli.

When I refer to pace bowling, it's pace bowling overall which include seam, swing, pace and bounce. While Kohli does well against pace and bounce, he generally struggles against seam and swing. Facing seam and swing to me has more weight age than raw pace.

I am referring to temperament in test matches which also includes playing long innings and playing to situation and strategy. Root is slightly better than Kohli in these aspects.

 

[Rayyman]

No man. You can't compare them. Different generations. Different class.

 

[Hasan123]

Another point to make is all 4 are already established as world class batsmen, Younis at the same age wasn't and has only cemented himself as a world class test batsmen in his latter years. Playing in uae has helped him but still got to show the tempremeant to score runs in UAE.

I think if fab 4 played in uae as much as Younis they would average 50 plus in uae.

 

[stevewittry]

Younis is the worst player out of the 5 when facing pace.

All 4 will surpass Younis.

He recently scored a double in swing friendly conditions against English bowlers. His 175 against Starc/ Hazelwood stands out. Both these innings at the twilight of his career, which speaks of his ability.

 

[stevewittry]

No man. You can't compare them. Different generations. Different class.

Fair comparison. They are all playing in the currently generation against same set of bowlers.

 

[Rayyman]

Fair comparison. They are all playing in the currently generation against same set of bowlers.

Joe Root debuted 12 years after Younis Khan. Similar to the three others. You mean to tell me that they are players of the same generation?!?

Younis played in the same generation as Amla, Cook, etc.

 

[stevewittry]

Joe Root debuted 12 years after Younis Khan. Similar to the three others. You mean to tell me that they are players of the same generation?!?

Younis played in the same generation as Amla, Cook, etc.

Still better than Bradman vs Umar Akmal is
Or Viv vs Kohli

 

[Hasan123]

He recently scored a double in swing friendly conditions against English bowlers. His 175 against Starc/ Hazelwood stands out. Both these innings at the twilight of his career, which speaks of his ability.

The English pitch was quicker but it wasn't swinging when he was batting anyway.

If you want to see his ability vs lateral movement watch the NZ series.

 

[stevewittry]

Nice thread

Thanks mate !!! This is the first appreciation of sorts that I got in this forum. Truly honoured.

 

[shaz619]

Agree with the OP, overall Khan is in a league of his own; he also faced tougher opposition and conditions then these modern guys. Khan missed some key tours during his prime but the fact that he continues to deliver way past his best just goes to show his class bit like Muhammad Ali beating Foreman despite losing 4 years of his prime. This is why Younis Khan is to cricket, what Muhammad Ali is to boxing.

Khan by 2004-05 had established himself as the best batsman on the planet (would break into the top 10 and then top 5 in 2006, vindicating his world class ability) and played some incredible innings, some which include the special at Bangalore; none of these modern batsman will ever play innings which compare to the one at Oval let alone the one in Bangalore and will never have the same fight, heart and courage to handle pressure situations like Younis Khan. There have been 11 away wins for Pakistan since Khan made his debut, Younis was involved in 9 of those and averages 100+ across 7 of those wins in countries which include New Zealand, South Africa, West Indies and England. In addition, Khan averages 40+ in every country during the era where it was difficult to bat barring SA and WI's, against arch rivals India where your mental fortitude is tested given the immense pressure on your shoulders (the games would be even bigger then Ashes) he averages 88 against the team.

On top of that, no one can match Khan's record in the 3rd/4th innings of a Test and has a better MOM awards ratio then Sachin Tendulkar, that's not saying much but mention his name given how highly rate he is; Khan truly is an unstoppable machine when it comes to impacting Tests and dealing with sticky situations.

Players like Root, Smith and Williamson are world class no doubt but have got a long way to go; it is fitting to compare Khan to greats such as Sachin, KP and Viv being in the same league.

 

[stevewittry]

The English pitch was quicker but it wasn't swinging when he was batting anyway.

If you want to see his ability vs lateral movement watch the NZ series.

NZ series was too small a sample size ... 2 test matches. If I recall the Pakistani team landed in NZ with no preparation whatsoever.

 

[ExpressPacer]

Thanks mate !!! This is the first appreciation of sorts that I got in this forum. Truly honoured.

Came a little late considering you've been here for a good decade.

 

[shaz619]

NZ series was too small a sample size ... 2 test matches. If I recall the Pakistani team landed in NZ with no preparation whatsoever.

Some of these children only started watching cricket past 2010 and go on hype about players who averaged 13 in England, completely disregard external factors such as era, quality of opposition, pitch, conditions, ability to handle pressure, whether the knock was an impact innings and sample size. So based on their narrow minded logic will advocate the greatness of the players at present.

 

[shaz619]

Came a little late considering you've been here for a good decade.

He is here during an auspicious occasion, the retirement series of the ALPHA and OMEGA, Younis KING Khan. Being someone who grew up during a period when cricket fans were a lot more knowledgeable he appreciates and values genius so is here to say his goodbyes before vanishing because stevewittry is out of touch with idiots who glorify the likes of Virat Kohli based on superficial logic.

 

[stevewittry]

Some of these children only started watching cricket past 2010 and go on hype about players who averaged 13 in England, completely disregard external factors such as era, quality of opposition, pitch, conditions, ability to handle pressure, whether the knock was an impact innings and sample size. So based on their narrow minded logic will advocate the greatness of the players at present.

That's precisely why I have the 13 average player at the lowest ranking, when compared in terms of fast bowling negotiation skills.

 

[Sachin136]

When I refer to pace bowling, it's pace bowling overall which include seam, swing, pace and bounce. While Kohli does well against pace and bounce, he generally struggles against seam and swing. Facing seam and swing to me has more weight age than raw pace.

I am referring to temperament in test matches which also includes playing long innings and playing to situation and strategy. Root is slightly better than Kohli in these aspects.

Kohli failed in one series. Root and Williamson have failed in series against pacers before as well (in Australia and New Zealand). But Kohli performed well against England all the other times he faced them.

Yes, that is the temperament I was talking about. Root struggles with converting his 50s.

Kohli has more double centuries than Root and Williamson combined.

 

[Hasan123]

NZ series was too small a sample size ... 2 test matches. If I recall the Pakistani team landed in NZ with no preparation whatsoever.

So his poor performances are a small sample size, but 2 innings out of 8 games is fair LOL?

 

[ahmedwaqas92]

Comparing a real warrior man with a bunch of kids lol.......

Out of the four mentioned only Smith will probably have a similar career to YK, the remaining three would do well to average 50 odd overall until the end of their careers...

 

[Gr8Gaur]

As Younis Khan is all set to bat for his last series, it would be interesting to see how posters in this forum rate him compared to the Fab-4 test batsmen of this generation.

While comparisons of this nature are subjective and based on personal prejudices, it would be worthwhile to rate him on 4 parameters- technique against pace/spin bowling, adaptability to different conditions, temperament and specifically ability to handle pressure.

Below are my assessment on these parameters -

Spin bowling technique -

Younis > Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Root

Pace bowling:

Williamson > Smith > Younis > Root > Kohli

Temperament:

Smith > Younis > Williamson > Root > Kohli

Pressure situations:

Younis > Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Root

OVERALL:

Younis > Smith > Williamson > Root > Kohli

Well done! Just Simply put it like this....

YK is the greatest of all time, far better thsn combined together of Bradman, Lara, SRT, Kallis, Sanga, Dravid, Ponting, Amla and whomsoever I missed.

 

[Hasan123]

Some of these children only started watching cricket past 2010 and go on hype about players who averaged 13 in England, completely disregard external factors such as era, quality of opposition, pitch, conditions, ability to handle pressure, whether the knock was an impact innings and sample size. So based on their narrow minded logic will advocate the greatness of the players at present.

Lol your opinion is fact. It's your opinion which I respect. No need to revert to personal insults.

I'm just giving my honest opinion, why should I put a player on a higher pedestal just because he plays for the team I support? Doesn't make me any less of a fan for not saying YK is an ATG.

For me he's not ATG, you are free to think what you want. Had he been an Indian with the same record, I don't think you would be championing him as an ATG and putting him up there with Viv and Sachin.

 

[Mamoon]

Nonsense posts by the usual suspects including the OP. All four have a much higher ceiling than Younis and will surpass him by the time they play 100 Tests. In fact, Smith has already surpassed him as a Test batsman. Also, lol at Younis being better than Kohli and Root against pace bowling.

Kohli is a brilliant player of pace and bounce, while Root is the best in the world when it comes to playing lateral movement. Apparently, two Tests on green-tops on which Younis batted like a tail-ender is a small sample size to conclude that he has weakness against lateral movement, but four Tests in England is more than enough to conclude that Kohli is weaker than Younis, Smith, Root and Williamson against pace bowling, even though he has been prolific everywhere else. Let's not even go to Australia, where he has embarrassed almost every Asian batsman of the past.

Secondly, Younis did not score the double-hundred in England in swinging conditions. It was proper flat pitch but with a little extra bounce. Younis at times has negotiated that, as he did at Old Trafford in 2006, but he has never been good enough to score runs against lateral movement. Never.

Too many poor points to address, but unfortunately I am too busy with work at the moment to make a more in-depth post, but certainly wouldn't mind revisiting this thread in a week's time.

 

[Gr8Gaur]

Comparing a real warrior man with a bunch of kids lol.......

Out of the four mentioned only Smith will probably have a similar career to YK, the remaining three would do well to average 50 odd overall until the end of their careers...

The FAB 4 unlike YK don't like to play in their comfort zones all the time, Kohli still has more test tons iut of home than in IND despite such a long home season.
He has already surpassed Younis for the number of tons outside Asia and doesn't play tests in ZIM.

YK has 7/34 test tons out of Asia including one against ZIM.

 

[Abdul]

All four are much better than the renowned FTB. Whenever playing overseas these four don't wait until the last Test to score some runs and inflate their average.

 

[shaz619]

Lol your opinion is fact. It's your opinion which I respect. No need to revert to personal insults.

I'm just giving my honest opinion, why should I put a player on a higher pedestal just because he plays for the team I support? Doesn't make me any less of a fan for not saying YK is an ATG.

For me he's not ATG, you are free to think what you want. Had he been an Indian with the same record, I don't think you would be championing him as an ATG and putting him up there with Viv and Sachin.

No need to throw words in my mouth and orchestrate some rubbish logic which revolves around advocating the greatness of various players due to where they come from, plenty of Indians do that; if I had the same mentality then why don't I say Shoaib Malik is an ATG etc but I don't. I've stated the reasons behind why I rate Khan and no one has succeeded in arguing against them unfortunately so I'll leave it at that. Posters who are more experienced and have seen it all such as [MENTION=1080]miandadrules[/MENTION] and hold little bias with regards to their assessment of cricketers will agree with me in addition to more knowledgeable folk so I care not for the views of the newcomer cricket fans or those who hold a bias against certain individuals due to their identity, character or personal choices.

So no, I do not rate Khan as an ATG because he is Pakistani but due to his incredible ability as a batsman. I've just as much of an attachment to Caribbean and British folk. I've followed this mans career since his debut and those who have done so would not belittle his accomplishments.

 

[stevewittry]

Nonsense posts by the usual suspects including the OP. All four have a much higher ceiling than Younis and will surpass him by the time they play 100 Tests. In fact, Smith has already surpassed him as a Test batsman. Also, lol at Younis being better than Kohli and Root against pace bowling.

Kohli is a brilliant player of pace and bounce, while Root is the best in the world when it comes to playing lateral movement. Apparently, two Tests on green-tops on which Younis batted like a tail-ender is a small sample size to conclude that he has weakness against lateral movement, but four Tests in England is more than enough to conclude that Kohli is weaker than Younis, Smith, Root and Williamson against pace bowling, even though he has been prolific everywhere else. Let's not even go to Australia, where he has embarrassed almost every Asian batsman of the past.

Secondly, Younis did not score the double-hundred in England in swinging conditions. It was proper flat pitch but with a little extra bounce. Younis at times has negotiated that, as he did at Old Trafford in 2006, but he has never been good enough to score runs against lateral movement. Never.

Too many poor points to address, but unfortunately I am too busy with work at the moment to make a more in-depth post, but certainly wouldn't mind revisiting this thread in a week's time.

Thanks for your insight. While you may be right that the Fab 4 has higher ceiling, but for them to play 100 tests and surpassing Yk is yet to occur and cannot be ascertained.

I did mention that the Pakistani team landed in NZ without prior preparation and hence his failure in 2 test matches can be written off due to this and also the small sample size.

I have admitted that Kohli does well with pace and bounce but his ability to negotiate lateral movement is suspect. Hence he has been successful in Australia where there is no lateral movement. The only series he faced bit of lateral movement is in England and although the sample size of 4 test matches is small, there is no other evidence to suggest that he can handle lateral movement. Next series in England or against Pakistan will probably provide some inputs. Till then I cannot rank him above YK, Root and Williamson, given the fact that they have done well in England.

 

[Gr8Gaur]

Apparently the great YK averages 23 in WI, correct me if I'm wrong but thats what I got from an Oz website.

Of course now he has the opportunity to set it straight against weakest ever WI side.

 

[stevewittry]

Apparently the great YK averages 23 in WI, correct me if I'm wrong but thats what I got from an Oz website.

Of course now he has the opportunity to set it straight against weakest ever WI side.

Why ignore his average in Australia and England ?
As you said, please revisit his stats in WI after the conclusion of the ongoing series.

 

[Gr8Gaur]

Why ignore his average in Australia and England ?
As you said, please revisit his stats in WI after the conclusion of the ongoing series.

So you can conveniently ignore Kohli's average in SA, AUS and NZ but I can't ignore YK's in World-WI, eh ?
And forget about this WI team mate, even Ashwin has 4 tons against WI.

 

[Bilal7]

If these four can become 80% of the test batsman that Younis Khan has been, they will go down as great players. Even at the age of 40, Younis Khan showed them how its done by playing two masterclass innings in England and Australia.

 

[Bilal7]

Comparing a real warrior man with a bunch of kids lol.......

Out of the four mentioned only Smith will probably have a similar career to YK, the remaining three would do well to average 50 odd overall until the end of their careers...

My prediction is the same. Root is an English batsman and they decline sharply after looking wonderful for a few years, Kohli has severe problems against swing and seam bowling and can't dominate on turners either and Kane, although my favorite out of the four, does not have that ruthlessness that the ATG batsmen do. He can still average 50+ but its not set in stone.

Smith might surpass Younis in the future but as of now, he has a long way to go before he reaches the ATG level.

 

[Hasan123]

No need to throw words in my mouth and orchestrate some rubbish logic which revolves around advocating the greatness of various players due to where they come from, plenty of Indians do that; if I had the same mentality then why don't I say Shoaib Malik is an ATG etc but I don't. I've stated the reasons behind why I rate Khan and no one has succeeded in arguing against them unfortunately so I'll leave it at that. Posters who are more experienced and have seen it all such as [MENTION=1080]miandadrules[/MENTION] and hold little bias with regards to their assessment of cricketers will agree with me in addition to more knowledgeable folk so I care not for the views of the newcomer cricket fans or those who hold a bias against certain individuals due to their identity, character or personal choices.

So no, I do not rate Khan as an ATG because he is Pakistani but due to his incredible ability as a batsman. I've just as much of an attachment to Caribbean and British folk. I've followed this mans career since his debut and those who have done so would not belittle his accomplishments.

I started watching cricket in 2005 so I'm not a newcomer. Just because someone doesn't think younis is an atg doesn't make them a newcomer to cricket LOL.

Yes I do respect his accomplishments. I have said before I rate him higher than KP and ABD in tests. So I'm not saying he is a bad player.

I have my reasons why I don't think he's an atg and you have yours for thinking why he is one.

PS : I have followed most of Younis career as well. So I have seen more than enough of him to say if he's an atg or not.

 

[shaz619]

I started watching cricket in 2005 so I'm not a newcomer. Just because someone doesn't think younis is an atg doesn't make them a newcomer to cricket LOL.

Yes I do respect his accomplishments. I have said before I rate him higher than KP and ABD in tests. So I'm not saying he is a bad player.

I have my reasons why I don't think he's an atg and you have yours for thinking why he is one.

PS : I have followed most of Younis career as well. So I have seen more than enough of him to say if he's an atg or not.

I've been watching since 1999! "LOL" And alright then we'll have to agree to disagree!

 

[Hasan123]

I've been watching since 1999! "LOL" And alright then we'll have to agree to disagree!

That was in 1998 brother

 

[Bilal7]

No need to throw words in my mouth and orchestrate some rubbish logic which revolves around advocating the greatness of various players due to where they come from, plenty of Indians do that; if I had the same mentality then why don't I say Shoaib Malik is an ATG etc but I don't. I've stated the reasons behind why I rate Khan and no one has succeeded in arguing against them unfortunately so I'll leave it at that. Posters who are more experienced and have seen it all such as [MENTION=1080]miandadrules[/MENTION] and hold little bias with regards to their assessment of cricketers will agree with me in addition to more knowledgeable folk so I care not for the views of the newcomer cricket fans or those who hold a bias against certain individuals due to their identity, character or personal choices.

So no, I do not rate Khan as an ATG because he is Pakistani but due to his incredible ability as a batsman. I've just as much of an attachment to Caribbean and British folk. I've followed this mans career since his debut and those who have done so would not belittle his accomplishments.

Good post. There are three types of Khan haters in this world:

1) Jealous Indians: These people can't stand seeing yet another Pakistani batsman reach the ATG level because for years they have been telling themselves that "Yes, we are pathetic in the pace bowling department but at least Pakistan is equally pathetic in the batting department" but guys like Inzamam, Zaheer, Anwar and Yousuf rubbish this claim and Miandad sets it on fire and jumps up and down on its ashes. Now Younis Khan has emerged as someone who will potentially end up with more centuries than Gavasker, a better average than Dravid and more centuries in wins than Tendulker. They are outraged at this possibility and therefore will stop at nothing to discredit the great man.

2) Sore-bum Yousuf/Inzamam fans: These guys cannot believe that Younis Khan has leaped over Pakistan's two bearded maestros and is arguably Pakistan's best batsman of all time. They probably grew up arguing with friends that Yousuf/Inzamam was the superior batsman and Younis can't play pace as well, doesn't look as classy, cannot accelerate and now that they have been proven wrong, they are desperately doing damage control and nitpicking over Khan's few flaws.

3) Trolls: These things live for hating on people more successful than they are and enjoy making controversial statements for the much-needed attention that it brings them. That is why you see them saying ridiculous things like Kohli is a better batsman than Khan or that Khan cannot play pace - despite the fact that Younis has a 50+ average in England and Australia and has classy centuries in New Zealand and South Africa - in order to get a reaction from the rest of the forum.

Other than these three groups, anyone who has followed Younis Khan's career and is familiar with his numbers and performances knows him to be an ATG and one of the top five batsmen from the subcontinent.

 

[Bilal7]

That was in 1998 brother

He's chucking you and your misinformed opinion off the top of a metaphorical cell. Like Foley however, you won't stay down and will continue getting destroyed by the Shazzytaker.

 

[kingusama92]

YK was a great batsman but this thread is a bit much.

Context is necessary.

Don't look at his stats overseas and assume those runs were made in swinging conditions. Many of his good knocks came on flatter wickets.

Great player of spin but average player of swing/seam. Absolutely dominant in Asian conditions.

 

[Hasan123]

He's chucking you and your misinformed opinion off the top of a metaphorical cell. Like Foley however, you won't stay down and will continue getting destroyed by the Shazzytaker.

Why should I stay down? Don't force your opnion on me. Just because I don't think Younis is an atg, it doesn't make any less of a fan and it doesn't make me a troll.

Yes I am a Moyo fan but I have said that Younis is the better batsmen overall because of grit and character.

Also just my reply to your post above is just because someone doesn't rate him as an atg doesn't make them any of things.

People have an opnion don't need to label them as anything. But should be use to your personal insults and name calling when someone doesn't agree with your opnion.

 

[Arsalan Pro]

Smith best of them.

 

[shaz619]

Good post. There are three types of Khan haters in this world:

1) Jealous Indians: These people can't stand seeing yet another Pakistani batsman reach the ATG level because for years they have been telling themselves that "Yes, we are pathetic in the pace bowling department but at least Pakistan is equally pathetic in the batting department" but guys like Inzamam, Zaheer, Anwar and Yousuf rubbish this claim and Miandad sets it on fire and jumps up and down on its ashes. Now Younis Khan has emerged as someone who will potentially end up with more centuries than Gavasker, a better average than Dravid and more centuries in wins than Tendulker. They are outraged at this possibility and therefore will stop at nothing to discredit the great man.

2) Sore-bum Yousuf/Inzamam fans: These guys cannot believe that Younis Khan has leaped over Pakistan's two bearded maestros and is arguably Pakistan's best batsman of all time. They probably grew up arguing with friends that Yousuf/Inzamam was the superior batsman and Younis can't play pace as well, doesn't look as classy, cannot accelerate and now that they have been proven wrong, they are desperately doing damage control and nitpicking over Khan's few flaws.

3) Trolls: These things live for hating on people more successful than they are and enjoy making controversial statements for the much-needed attention that it brings them. That is why you see them saying ridiculous things like Kohli is a better batsman than Khan or that Khan cannot play pace - despite the fact that Younis has a 50+ average in England and Australia and has classy centuries in New Zealand and South Africa - in order to get a reaction from the rest of the forum.

Other than these three groups, anyone who has followed Younis Khan's career and is familiar with his numbers and performances knows him to be an ATG and one of the top five batsmen from the subcontinent.

It's funny when I get accused for supporting Khan because he is "Pakistani" (are we meant to support opposing teams now to be more objective allegedly LOL) but am as neutral as they come! and on top of that, based on their logic then I should call them out for having an inferior complex by belittling everything Pakistani! there are a number of posters who pose as the men in green with their blue shirts on underneath.

Totally agree with your post, Indians barring a few will go out of their way to belittle Khan and am like fair enough they will never look beyond their rose tinted glasses but what makes it worse is when there are Pak fans who indulge in waving the India flag before resorting to making fun of Khan; I've said it before, no one is perfect and he has asked forgiveness as well even when he did not need to and for me in general overall has conducted himself quiet well so beyond all of that we must not abuse him for the sake of it, people think they are funny but I see them as pathetic low lives; are there a group of fans out there who disrespect a legend who has done so much for them?

And with regards to his performances they speak for themselves so these subjective lists and superficial views don't mean as much in comparison, people will go off on a tangent and spew nonsense when you point his numbers out. Those who are truly objective, understand the game and have studied his career will appreciate what he means to Pakistan. While he averages 40+ everywhere apart from SA and the West Indies a place where he has not done so well, you know what the beauty of that is from the perspective of Khan's match winning ability? Pakistan have not won a Test series there because Khan has not fired, it just goes to show that when he does fire Pakistan win, that's the impact he has on the Pakistan batting line up and how much they've relied on him for years, we will be lucky to find another like him so people should be grateful! also shout out to his fielding skills! we take that for granted as well

 

[shaz619]

[MENTION=129948]Bilal7[/MENTION] people always focus on certain negatives and define an individual by them but some things they just do not know, Khan and Afridi once attended a charity event in Birmingham to raise money for SWAT; at the end of the event both were to remain and interact with fans etc Afridi immediately left, but Khan stayed and a lot longer then he needed to.

He Spoke to each fan, shook their hand and gave them his undivided attention to all of us when we were not worthy of it and he was better of going to bed! it was quiet late! some organisers were like that's it guys sod off! go home! and Khan turned to them and said no you sod off! that's the kind of man he is, a champion of the people and a champion on the pitch us real fans of cricket will forever be in your debt #ThankYouYounis

There is another story where at an event MS Dhoni and Khan were spearheading, in the same instance a friend of mine who is an India fan said he was overwhelmed by the kindness and respect from Khan while Dhoni came across as arrogant and sought of left while Younis attended to everyone

 

[Rayyman]

Good post. There are three types of Khan haters in this world:

1) Jealous Indians: These people can't stand seeing yet another Pakistani batsman reach the ATG level because for years they have been telling themselves that "Yes, we are pathetic in the pace bowling department but at least Pakistan is equally pathetic in the batting department" but guys like Inzamam, Zaheer, Anwar and Yousuf rubbish this claim and Miandad sets it on fire and jumps up and down on its ashes. Now Younis Khan has emerged as someone who will potentially end up with more centuries than Gavasker, a better average than Dravid and more centuries in wins than Tendulker. They are outraged at this possibility and therefore will stop at nothing to discredit the great man.

2) Sore-bum Yousuf/Inzamam fans: These guys cannot believe that Younis Khan has leaped over Pakistan's two bearded maestros and is arguably Pakistan's best batsman of all time. They probably grew up arguing with friends that Yousuf/Inzamam was the superior batsman and Younis can't play pace as well, doesn't look as classy, cannot accelerate and now that they have been proven wrong, they are desperately doing damage control and nitpicking over Khan's few flaws.

3) Trolls: These things live for hating on people more successful than they are and enjoy making controversial statements for the much-needed attention that it brings them. That is why you see them saying ridiculous things like Kohli is a better batsman than Khan or that Khan cannot play pace - despite the fact that Younis has a 50+ average in England and Australia and has classy centuries in New Zealand and South Africa - in order to get a reaction from the rest of the forum.

Other than these three groups, anyone who has followed Younis Khan's career and is familiar with his numbers and performances knows him to be an ATG and one of the top five batsmen from the subcontinent.

There are also people who try to be objective in their argument and overcompensate by putting Pakistani players lower than players from other countries. Simply due to to the fact that those players are from Pakistan and the poster doesn't want to seem biased.

A youngsta beauty like me will look at YK's record and say that he is an ATG; But because I am not old enough to have seen a large part of his career, I can not really say for sure whether or not he is a legend.

 

[Rayyman]

There are also people who try to be objective in their argument and overcompensate by putting Pakistani players lower than players from other countries. Simply due to to the fact that those players are from Pakistan and the poster doesn't want to seem biased.

A youngsta beauty like me will look at YK's record and say that he is an ATG; But because I am not old enough to have seen a large part of his career, I can not really say for sure whether or not he is a legend.

[MENTION=46929]shaz619[/MENTION] basically says this above. He himself is an ATG. Having seen cricket since 1998. Two years before YK debuted.

 

[shaz619]

[MENTION=46929]shaz619[/MENTION] basically says this above. He himself is an ATG. Having seen cricket since 1998. Two years before YK debuted.

Since 1999 brother! me first exposure was the Rawal Pindi Express in his glorious lime green shirt during the WC in England

 

[Rayyman]

The Fab 4 all have the potential to be ATGs. Could be some of the best batsmen of all time. Just won't equal Tendulkar because of how much that guy played.

 

[shaz619]

The Fab 4 all have the potential to be ATGs. Could be some of the best batsmen of all time. Just won't equal Tendulkar because of how much that guy played.

Right now, all have a long way to go but Smith is the only one who has displayed enough for me to contemplate him becoming an ATG in the future; the others are bloody hype jobs, the equivalent of 3MB, Kohli is Jinder, Root is Heath Slater and Williamson is Drew

 

[Buffet]

Thread may make some sense if Smith is not there.

 

[The_Odd_One]

Younis is a bigger test cricketer than Root, Kohli, and Williamson. Smith has reached the same level and will easily surpass Younis after 100 tests.

 

[Aman]

Smith has already surpassed YK, Kohli and Root will surpass him in a few years time.

Kane at 26 is carrying the NZ batting, captaining the side and bats at 3 unlike the rest (makes a big difference, essentially is an opener for us).

I don't think he'll surpass him, but I'll be happy to see him finish with a high 40's average with some big wins against the stronger sides under his belt.

 

[Aman]

Spin bowling: Younis > Smith > Kohli > Root > Williamson
Pace bowling: Root > Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Younis
Swing/seam: Smith > Root > Kohli > Williamson > Younis
Temperament: Smith > Younis > Kohli > Williamson > Root
Pressure situations: Smith > Younis > Kohli > Root > Williamson
OVERALL: Smith > Younis > Kohli > Root > Williamson

 

[Snatch]

Stealing Aman's formatting

Spin bowling: Smith > Younis > Kohli> Root > Williamson
Pace bowling: Root> Smith> Williamson> Kohli > Younis
Swing/seam: Root >Williamson> Smith> Kohli> Younis
Temperament: Smith > Younis > Kohli > Williamson > Root
Pressure situations: Smith > Kohli > Root = Younis = Williamson
OVERALL: Smith > Root > Williamson > Kohli > Younis

 

[Aman]

Spin bowling: Younis > Smith > Kohli > Root > Williamson
Pace bowling: Root > Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Younis
Swing/seam: Smith > Root > Kohli > Williamson > Younis
Temperament: Smith > Younis > Kohli > Williamson > Root
Pressure situations: Smith > Younis > Kohli > Root > Williamson
OVERALL: Smith > Younis > Kohli > Root > Williamson

Ops.

Pace bowling is wrong, it should be:
Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Root > Younis

 

[stevewittry]

Ops.

Pace bowling is wrong, it should be:
Smith > Kohli > Williamson > Root > Younis

YK is underrated against pace/swing.

 

[Snatch]

YK is underrated against pace/swing.

It's not really a matter of being underrated, he's just obviously and quite clearly not as good as those other 4 are against the swinging seaming ball.

 

[stevewittry]

It's not really a matter of being underrated, he's just obviously and quite clearly not as good as those other 4 are against the swinging seaming ball.

Folks who have watched him since his early days would certainly rate him above Kohli against pace/ swing/ seam if not other 3 who and born and brought up on home grown pace friendly conditions.

 

[Snatch]

Folks who have watched him since his early days would certainly rate him above Kohli against pace/ swing/ seam if not other 3 who and born and brought up on home grown pace friendly conditions.

Only biased one-eyed Pakistan fans would think he'd be anywhere near Root/Smith/Williamson against top class pace/seam/swing in favorable pace bowling conditions. Younis is also easily the worst starter in decent pace conditions. (and I don't mean the flat aussie wickets we've seen of late with no sideways) He can sometimes get through it and go big which is credit to his concentration and fight, but he can look horribly hopeless at times.

He's very good against spin though, just 2nd to Smith of the 5 in my opinion.

 

[Dr_Bassim]

Good cricketer.

Above Root, Williamson and Kohli.

At par probably Steve Smith.

Miles below Tendulkar or Brahman or other ATG's.

I've seen his career and he has a penchant for going missing all series and scoring Daddy hundreds to boost up his series average.

Even in Australia he averaged well but was useless in preventing a 3-0 defeat.

England was pretty good.

Nz we all know.

Very good cricketer but just a shade below ATG.

 

[Rayyman]

Lol @posters saying that Smith is better. Has like half of what YK has achieved.

Will probably end up better though. Not yet.

 

[Sachin136]

Only biased one-eyed Pakistan fans would think he'd be anywhere near Root/Smith/Williamson against top class pace/seam/swing in favorable pace bowling conditions. Younis is also easily the worst starter in decent pace conditions. (and I don't mean the flat aussie wickets we've seen of late with no sideways) He can sometimes get through it and go big which is credit to his concentration and fight, but he can look horribly hopeless at times.

He's very good against spin though, just 2nd to Smith of the 5 in my opinion.

That's not true all IMO. Smith struggled a lot in the first two matches (the only ones on tough pitches) in India despite scoring a scratchy hundred. Younis is one of the best players against spin that I've seen. Smith has a long way to go.

 

[captain crook]

Realistically, Smith = Younis > Root> Kane

Kohli should feature in the discussion when he does score some runs at an average of at least 20 in England. Embarrassing player with embarrassing technique.

 

[Slog]

Kohli has multiple centuries in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. He is better against pacers than Younis, Root and Williamson.

Root has a major issue converting his 50s. I don't know how he has a better temperament than Kohli.

not necessarily disagreeing with your conclusion but Kohli has 1 century each in NZ, SA and Zero in Eng. Aust is the only place where he has dominated and Azhar Ali has too

 

[Slog]

Younis Khan is the BEST player of spin I have EVER seen!

Post 2000 he is better than all in my opinion in that regard

 

[Aman]

not necessarily disagreeing with your conclusion but Kohli has 1 century each in NZ, SA and Zero in Eng. Aust is the only place where he has dominated and Azhar Ali has too

Scored the softest of tons.

Day 5, 2 sessions left, game heading towards a draw and he gets there after nicking off really early in the innings.

 

[light]

This I have to agree with. In my Personal opinion, Root is the weakest link from these 4.

 

[Buffet]

Lol @posters saying that Smith is better. Has like half of what YK has achieved.

Will probably end up better though. Not yet.

He is in different league than the likes of YK.

Smith has held into rank 1 for longer period than YK has spent time in top 5. So gap it huge here to put them in the same bracket despite Smith not playing same number of tests. YK has impressive stats, but there is a good reason that he struggled to hold top 5 rank for any extended period.



.
.


Smith has 4 tons in Asia with 50+ average. He is averaging 60+ after 50+ tests. Yah, YK playing around 100 tests is a good point, but YK has not averaged around 58-60 any time in his career like Kallis, Sanga, SRT, Ponting etc did after playing lots of tests. So we don't really have to wait till Smith plays 100 tests. YK is simply not in that league.

 

[Chrish]

Would be surprised if at least two of these won't be rated higher in future

 

[Sadevdesai]

You can take these names and put them in any random order and easily justify the order. All depends on who is doing the justifying !!!!

 

[Ramez]

All are very good but i want to make a point about quality of the bowling post 2005. No warne no murali no saqlain no wasim no waqar no Mcgrath.. i think bowling standards have gone down by a lot ( nothing to take away from steyn anderson ashwin ajmal asif ) and batesmen of 90s with averages in 40s would be better than batsmen of this era with more than 50 averages.

 

[Lopuy]

I guess the complaints regarding Kohli not able to play moving ball are over after the England series.

2018 was supposed to be the hardest year for a Batsman having lowest avg runs per wicket in a decade. All the teams had best bowling attacks they have ever had in their cricket history and the pitches were one of the deadliest in 2018. India had most of their tours away from home in 2018 and in countries where asian batsman haven't performed well. This guy dominated their attacks, became the highest run getter in every series except Australia above players like Amla, de villiers, Cook, Root and finished 2018 with 60+ Avg in test cricket. He was challanged in England in 2011. This time before the England series, lot of talk surrounding his ability to play moving ball, critics still unsure about his technique. Come the England tour he put his critics to silence in the very first innings of first test test itself and went on to score almost 600 runs. The same Anderson couldn't even buy his wicket even once in the whole series.
Critics were still not satisfied. They said his runs don't win you matches and series. The Australia tour arrived, he won India the series as a batsman, featured in top 3 run getters of the series with 40+ average and the one of the best centuries of the year on one of thes hardest track against one of the best bowling lineups. He became the first first Indian captain to give India the first test series win in Australia.

This is just the test stats of 2018, in ODI the man averaged 100+, and won India the ODI series in South Africa, Aus and NZ.

What a legend.

 

[Lopuy]

I feel still many people will come up with some new ridiculous ideas to put down kohli's achievements but i hope the man continues to surge ahead, puts naysayers behind and and helps India achieve many such feats.

 

[big_gamer007]

Kohli is competing with Lara and SRT. He is not even playing the same sport as YK or others.
Smith as a test bat will also be in same league as Kohli provided it's the same Smith after the ban as he was before.

 

[Lopuy]

He still needs to continue batting at the same rate. He will surely become one of the best bastman and great of all time

 

[jeeteshssaxena]

Smith>kohli>younis=williamson>root.
Younis khan was never as dominant as kohli and smith outside asia.
Younis has total 4 centuries in SENA and on the other hand kohli made 4 centuries in one tour to aus. So this isn't a fair comparison.
Cheteshwar pujara is more like younis khan, obviously yk is better as of now but Pujara has started delivering in overseas conditions and it will be interesting to see how he plays in next overseas cycle.

 

[Lopuy]

Smith may or may not be better than Kohli but one thing is sure he hasn't had a year like kohli had in 2018. And certainly i don't think he will have such a year ever.

 

[Hasan123]

All the fab 4 will surpass YK.