who is the best opening batsmen in test cricket now?

[sifter132]

Sehwag for me. Graeme Smith barely did anything against the Aussie attack at it's best, but Sehwag still managed to take the Aussies apart, so that gives Sehwag an advantage in my eyes. Gambhir has been very good too, but he needs to keep it up over a longer period to solidify that.

Strauss is dogged but not brilliant like Gayle. Combine the 2 and you'd have a great opener, by themselves they're merely good.

And I'd nominate Simon Katich (as well as Shane Watson), but particularly Katich who has been very good in the last year and a half since coming back into the Test side. He's not as good as Sehwag/Gambhir but I think he's up their with Strauss and Smith.

 

[CG123]

Realistically it's Gambhir.
But b/c I'm bias and I need to go for a Kiwi, I'll go with BJ Watling.

 

[Robelinda]

Smith. He's consistent and got plenty of experience as an opener.

Only two of the guys have made runs all over the world, Smith and Sehwag. Now Smith has won tests in aus and eng with big tons, so i vote for him, even though i cant stand SA. In 2008 Smith two great 4th inn tons to win tests, enough said.

Gambhir hasnt played enough away from the SC to be considered.

 

[Annoyingdevil]

To be honest no one is a good Openar

 

[pcfan123]

To be honest no Pakistani is a good Openar

fixed .

 

[Annoyingdevil]

fixed .

I don't support Pakistan that much..idiot.. plus Test Sucks!!

 

[OKP]

Ross Taylor - He usually bats in the first over.

 

[Robelinda]

Ross Taylor - He usually bats in the first over.

:rtfl

 

[Dutch]

I don't support Pakistan that much..idiot.. plus Test Sucks!!

It's amazing how many things suck in your life: are you per chance a sales representative of the "Hoover" company!?

 

[Dare]

I don't support Pakistan that much..idiot.. plus Test Sucks!!

man the quality of your posts today has just been brilliant. I don't know how the site would have made it without your pointless contributions.

Only two of the guys have made runs all over the world, Smith and Sehwag.

The only place Smith doesn't average above 40 is in Australia. Sehwag for some reason averages 11 in 2 tests against Bangladesh, sucks in New Zealand and South Africa. He also averages under 40 in England but just by half a point. Id say that out of the two only Smith qualifies as the guy that scored runs all over the world.

 

[StinkyBoHoon]

the south africa thing is valid, but I think the only reason he sucked in new zealand recently anyway is because he was killing everyone at that time and I think he wanted to score a 30 ball ton or something.

he was on fire in the ODI series and he took their attack too lightly in the tests.

that's not really an excuse, but I don't think the conditions were anything to do with it, it was his own idiocy.

anyway, for me it's sehwag whether that counts or not. He's not normal, and there's a case for him being the best opener ever.

 

[Dare]

I just think he cant play there, Gambhir put up a crap load of runs in that series and Sehwag failed. He still doesn't have a 50 in New Zealand.
New Zealand pitches or conditions offer some movement and if a bowler can get some movement in the air or of the seam Sehwag is screwed. It wasn't his "idiocy" it was just the lack of skill and will do adopt to different conditions. He can put up with a little bit of extra bounce but against swing and seam he is like a fish out of water.

 

[StinkyBoHoon]

sehwag was run out once got out to spinners twice out of 5 innings, that doesn't suggest seam bowling was an obvious problem.

New Zealand is by some distance his favoured country for ODIs as well. 20 better than his career average there.

Maybe you are right and he does struggle against seam, but even if so that series isn't part of the evidence. The pitches were glass for a start, there was no seam movement.

 

[Dare]

sehwag was run out once got out to spinners twice out of 5 innings, that doesn't suggest seam bowling was an obvious problem.

New Zealand is by some distance his favoured country for ODIs as well. 20 better than his career average there.

Maybe you are right and he does struggle against seam, but even if so that series isn't part of the evidence. The pitches were glass for a start, there was no seam movement.

so that makes it out twice to seamers.

and maybe he likes playing ODIs in NZ because the grounds are as small as they can get. In South Africa, England and Australia his ODI form is horrendous.

 

[StinkyBoHoon]

ok, for the tour, against spinners he made 2-11,

against the pace bowlers he was 2-129

I even remember Kirsten at the time commenting on how he tried to go ballistic too often that tour, "he sometimes thinks spinners don't have a right to exist" he would have scored more against pace bowlers. He was murdering mills.