Steve Smith became the 15th cricketer in history and the fourth Australian to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket on Wednesday, further strengthening his name in the cricketing duniya (world). The 35-year-old stand-in captain reached this bada (big) milestone with a single off Prabath Jayasuriya in Galle during the first morning of the opening Test against Sri Lanka. With this, he joined legendary Australian batters like Ricky Ponting, Allan Border, and Steve Waugh in an elite list led by India’s Sachin Tendulkar.
However, this achievement once again started the purani (old) debate about who is the best Test batter of this generation. Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting named Smith, Joe Root, and Kane Williamson as the top contenders, but surprisingly did not include India’s Virat Kohli in this discussion.
“Is he [Smith] the best player of his generation? It’s hard to argue against it,” Ponting said on Seven. “Joe Root is the other one now, and Kane Williamson’s record is also zabardast (outstanding). Joe’s performance in the last couple of years has taken him back to the top, I think.”
Ponting explained that earlier, the cricketing duniya (world) considered the “big four”—Smith, Root, Williamson, and Kohli—to be equal, but Root’s consistency in the past few years had changed the soch (thinking). “Five or six years ago, when this big four was formed, with Kohli as well, Joe was probably at the neeche (bottom) because he hadn’t scored as many centuries as the others. But in the last four years, he has scored 19 centuries, which has made a big difference.”
He also said that this debate depends on nazariya (perspective) and national bias: “If you ask an Englishman, they’ll say Joe Root. If you ask an Aussie, they’ll say Steve Smith. If you ask a Kiwi, they’ll say Kane Williamson. So it’s a tough one, but looking at the numbers, it’s hard to ignore what Smith has achieved.”
Smith’s achievement is even more khaas (special) because he has scored runs in all conditions. Almost half of his total runs have come in videsh (overseas), and his average is still more than 50—putting him in the same level as Ponting (46.40 overseas), Border (56.47), and Waugh (55.5).
Ponting also spoke about Smith’s recent form, especially against India during the Australian summer. “Before the summer, he was going through a halka (lean) phase, but the two centuries he scored in the summer—especially in Melbourne—showed his class. That innings was one of the best I’ve seen him play in a long time,” Ponting said. “So if he wants to continue, he definitely can.”
While Smith’s milestone proves his dominance in Test cricket, the debate about the best batter of this generation is still going strong—especially with Kohli’s name missing from Ponting’s discussion, which has surprised many in the cricketing duniya (world).
