Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time

Cricket, a gentle man’s game was invented a long time ago. Since then the game of cricket has produced many great batsmen. Each of these batsmen have their own skills , technique, style and elegance. Few players have managed to etch their name in list of top 10 greatest batsman of all time in cricket. Here let’s take a look at the top 10 greatest batsman of all time : - 


1   Sachin Tendulkar (India)

Started playing cricket at a tender age of 16, Sachin holds the majority of batting records in cricket history. He is considered the second best behind Don Bradman in tests and in ODI’s, he is considered the greatest cricketer ever. He was the first to score 10,000 runs in ODI’s and has totally scored 18,426 runs when he retired from ODI’s. In tests, he has accumulated 15645 runs at an average of approximately 54. He was also the first batsman to score a 200 in ODI, score 100 international centuries and 50 centuries in tests. He has faced the most lethal bowlers during his playing days which included the likes of Waqar, Wasim, Akthar, Warne, Muralitharan, McGrath, Lee, Donald and many more. His straight drive is a delight to watch for and his innings against Australia in Sharjah which is also known as desert storm should be considered as one of the greatest innings in cricket history. Tendulkar has added several modern and unorthodox strokes into his repertoire, including the paddle sweep, the scoop over short fine leg and the slash to third man over the slips’ heads, over the last decade.

2   Sir Donald Bradman ( Australia)

Sir Donald Bradman is at number 2 spot in our list of top 10 greatest batsman of all time. Don Bradman was an Australian Legendary cricketer who is widely acknowledged as the greatest Test batsman of all time. Bradman’s career Test average of 99.94 is statistically recorded as the greatest achievement by any sportsman in sporting history. With just 4 runs needed in his final innings to hold an average of 100.00 in tests, Bradman got out for a duck. He favoured cut shots, pull and hook shots to deal with the bounce and devised a unique grip on the bat handle that would accommodate these strokes without compromising his ability to defend. Employing a side-on stance at the wicket, Bradman kept perfectly still as the bowler ran in. He “used the crease” by either coming metres down the wicket to drive, or playing so far back that his feet ended up level with the stumps when playing the cut, hook or pull. He temporarily adapted his technique during the Bodyline series, deliberately moving around the crease in an attempt to score from the short-pitched deliveries. He was given the Knighthood in 2009. He is undoubtedly one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. The only reason why Bradman was given the number 2 in our  list for  Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time is because he has scored his majority of his runs against England and during his days the bowlers were not aggressive enough to trouble the batsmen.

3   Sir Vivian Richards (West Indies)

Vivian Richards was a former West Indian player who refined the term Aggressive Batting in cricket. Richards was a very powerful right-handed batsman with an extremely attacking style and is often regarded as the most devastating batsman that ever played the game by cricketers, journalists and others. His fearless and aggressive style of play, and relaxed but determined demeanor made him a great crowd favourite and a nightmare for opposition bowlers all over the world and makes him one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. The word “swagger” is frequently used to describe his batting style. In his Test career, he scored 8,540 runs in 121 Test matches at an average of 50.23 and holds the record for scoring the fastest-ever Test century, from just 56 balls against England. Given the Knighthood in 1999, Richards is in number 3 in our  list for  Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time.

4   Sir Garfield Sobers (West Indies)

Garfield Sobers is a former West Indian cricketer who played cricket between 1954 and 1974 is widely considered one of cricket’s greatest all-rounder and one among the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. In 1958, he created a record for the highest individual score in an innings, which was not broken for 36 years until Lara scored 375 in 1994. Sobers was given the honourable “Knighthood” by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to the game. Sobers became the first player ever to hit six sixes in a single over of six consecutive balls. This tally of 36 runs in an over. In 2000 Sobers was named by a 100-member panel of experts as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Century. The International Cricket Council (ICC) inaugurated the “Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy” which is awarded annually to the player selected by ICC as its Player of the Year. Richie Benaurd described Sobers as “the greatest all-round cricketer the world has seen” has been given the number 4 position in our list for  Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time. 

5   Sunil Gavaskar (India)

Sunil Gavaskar is a former cricketer who played India in the 1970′s and 1980′s. He is regarded as one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time and one of the greatest opening batsman in cricket history. Gavaskar set world records during his career for the most Test runs and most Test centuries scored by any batsman. He held the record of 34 Test centuries for almost two decades before it was broken by Sachin in 2005. Gavaskar was widely admired for his technique against pace bowling with a astonishing average of 65.45 against the West Indies, who had a four-pronged fast bowling attack comprising of Micheal Holding, Joel Garner, Andy Roberts, Malcom Marshall who are regarded as the most vicious pace bowling combination in Test history.While Gavaskar could not be described as an attacking batsman, he had the ability of keeping the scoreboard ticking with unique shots such as the “late flick”. His focus of technical correctness over flair meant that his style of play was usually less suited to the shorter form of the game, at which he had less success.  He is undoubtedly one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time.  Awarded the prestigious Col CK Naydu Lifetime Achievement Award for Cricket in India in 2012, Sunny Gavaskar takes the number 5 position in our list for  Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time.

6   Brain Lara (West Indies)

Brian Charles Lara,  is a former West Indian international cricketer. He is generally regarded as one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. Lara also holds the record for the highest individual score in a test innings after scoring 400 not out against England at Antigua in 2004. He is the only batsman to have ever scored a hundred, a double century, a triple century, a quadruple century and a quintuple century in first class games in his career. Lara also holds the test record of scoring the highest number of runs in a single over in a Test match, when he scored 28 runs off an over by South Africa’s Robin Peterson. So he is undoubtedly one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. A test average of 52.88 and an ODI average of 41 shows how good a player he was for West Indies during his days. He was also the only person in his era who was compared to the Legendary Sachin Tendulkar. He also had the record for most runs in test cricket which was later broken by Sachin. Being inducted into ICC Hall of fame in January 2012, Brain Lara takes the number 6 position in our list for  Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time.

7   Ricky Ponting (Australia)

Ricky Thomas Ponting is the former Australian captain who is considered one of the best batsman of his era and one among the top 10 greatest batsmen of all time as well. Ponting is an aggressive competitor, as manifested in his on-field conduct. According to former Australian captain Allan Border, what you see with Ponting is what you get, and “he wears his heart on his sleeve. He is one among the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. Despite being widely renowned as the best player of the hook and pull shots in the world, Ponting is equally adept on both the front and back foot. After being involved in over 160 Tests and 370 ODIs, Ponting is Australia’s leading run-scorer in Test and ODI cricket. He is one of only four players in history to have scored 13,000 Test runs. As a player he is also the only cricketer in history to be involved in 100 Test victories. Nicknamed Punter, Ponting takes away  the number 7 spot in our list for Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time. You may love him or you may hate him but you can never ignore his name from the list of top 10 greatest batsmen of all time.

8   Rahul Dravid (India)

Rahul Sharad Dravid is known for his technique, and had been one of the best batsmen for the Indian cricket team. In the beginning, he was known as a defensive batsman who should be confined to Test cricket, and was dropped from the ODI squad due to a low strike rate. However in a period of his career, he began consistently scoring runs in ODIs as well, earning him the name THE WALL of Indian Cricket. Dravid has scored 36 centuries in Tests at an average of 53.19 and in one-dayers, he has an average of 39.49. He is one of the few players whose Test average is better at away than at home, averaging almost five runs more in foreign pitches. Everyone praises Sachin Tendulkar. He may be a genius in his own right, but , Rahul Dravid is an artist. One can’t get a better pleasure than watching Dravid’s defence tactics, his strokes, his cuts. Known for his calmness, Dravid made number 3 position in the Indian Test side as his own with his ability to play a long innings and holding an innings together. In 2011 test series against England, he opened the batting in place of injured Gautam Gambhir and carried his bat throughout the innings. Due to some poor performances, he called it a day in 2012. But there is no denial to the fact that he is one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. The youngsters of this Twenty20 generation should learn how to be patient and to build an innings from Dravid. He deserve a place in anybody’s list of top 10 greatest batsman of all time. This gives “Jammy” the number 8 spot in our list for Top 10 greatest batsman of all time.

9   Jacques Kallis (South Africa)

Jacques Henry Kallis, a complete All-Rounder is the only cricketer in the history of the game to hold more than 13,000 runs and 250 wickets in both one day and Test match cricket. Nobody can ignore him if you are asked to compile a list of top 10 greatest batsmen of all time. Kallis has played over 150 Tests and boasts a batting average of just under 57 runs per innings. Being a consistent performer in all formats, Kallis is regarded as the only threat for Sachin Tendulkars’s batting records in tests. He is undoubtedly one of the top 10 greatest batsman of all time. He has scored 44 test tons just 7 behind the Master Blaster and trails him by just 2500 runs with the latter has played 34 matches more than Kallis. At 37, he is still rock solid and consistent in all departments. That makes him number 9 in our list for Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time.

10  Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka)

Sanath Jayasuriya is ranked 10th in our list of top 10 greatest batsman of all time. Sanath Teran Jayasuriya, revolutionized One Day International batting with his aggressive tactics , a strategy they first tried on the preceding tour of Australia. The tactic used was to take advantage of the early fielding restrictions by smashing the opening bowlers to all parts of the cricket ground, particularly by lofting their deliveries over the mandatory infielders, rather than the established tactic of building up momentum gradually. He has torn apart almost every bowler in his era and he was named the Player Of the Tournament during the 1996 World Cup which was won by Lanka. The strange fact is that he made his international debut for Sri Lanka as a Slow Left arm Orthodox bowler and a middle order batsman in the year 1989 and retired as a successful opening batsman across all formats in the year 2011. Even though his career average both in Tests and ODI’s are on the lower side, he can give his team a blistering start to their innings and that gives him a place in our Top 10 Greatest Batsman of All Time. And it is quite justified to include his name in the list of top 10 greatest batsman of all time.