Former Australian cricket legend Ricky Ponting has revealed his all-time top-five batters in Test cricket, notably excluding Indian star Virat Kohli, despite Kohli’s illustrious record of 9,230 runs in 210 Test innings. Another notable omission from Ponting’s list was Australia’s Steve Smith, often grouped with Kohli as part of the modern-era “Fab Four.” Instead, Ponting chose to include England’s Joe Root and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson in his elite lineup. He expressed admiration for several greats of the game while providing reasoning behind each of his picks.
“Brian Lara was the most skillful batter I played against and when I was captain, he gave me more sleepless nights than anybody. Sachin was technically as good as anyone I’ve seen, along with Rahul Dravid; I’d put Joe in there now as well, and Kane Williamson,” stated Ponting, as quoted by The Times.
Interestingly, Ponting also gave a special mention to England’s Ben Stokes, whose statistics may not dazzle on paper but whose impact in crucial moments makes him stand out in Ponting’s eyes.
“Stokes is a hard one. Numbers don’t define him. It’s been about moments with him, he’s a situation player. When things get the toughest, he’s been at his best. When you’re talking about the greats, you’ve got to talk about impact on games,” he added.
When reflecting on Root’s career trajectory, Ponting praised the England batter’s consistency and ability to evolve into a match-winner, especially in recent years.
“What he’s done the past five years is extraordinary. Look at the numbers: he’s got 13,500 runs. I rank players on how long they can stay at the top of their powers. You can be a great player for 30 to 40 games but can you do it for 150 games? Joe probably wasn’t a great player for his first 100 games he had 17 hundreds in 97 Tests but he’s turned into a great player. He has got 21 hundreds in his past 60 games (before the Oval Test),” remarked Ponting.
While many fans expected Kohli or Smith to earn a spot, their exclusion sparked discussions, especially with Kohli’s legacy. Another surprise absence from Ponting’s lineup was South African great Jacques Kallis, who holds an impressive career average of 55.37 currently the highest among the top five leading run-scorers in Test history. Having No Australian in the list was unlike Ponting.