Year in Review: Top 10 Test batsmen of the year

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and not reflective of the website as a whole.

Retrospection and reflections are many as yet another impressive test season starts to slowly slip by. For a format that was reeling under precariousness and uncertainty, the finesse of Test cricket never really faded away throughout the course of the season. On the contrary, there was a certain poignancy to it that not only separated it from the likes of its newer contemporaries, but also brought home an acute feeling of nostalgia.

There were substantiating debut performances, overhauling of previously long-standing cricketing records that had stood the test of time, and there were a couple of retirements that made every cricketing fan weep for the time that would never come again. Test cricket in 2013 was thus a peculiar blend of old with new, with the latter staying on to entertain, while the former seeped away to remembrances.

Before the year ends though, it’s only fair that the most highlighting of test match performances – batsmen, in this case – be enumerated for one last recollection:

Shikhar Dhawan:

Shikhar Dhawan

The south-paw from Delhi, debuted in the third test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy held at Mohali, at the start of 2013. Since that time on, Dhawan has made himself indispensable to the Indian cricket team with a style that’s distinctly his own combining self-confidence with a certain arrogance that never fails to put the bowlers on the back-foot. His first test saw him break the previously held record of Gundappa Vishwanath of scoring the highest innings in test debut and made him a cricketing icon overnight with kids emulating his actions of twirling his moustache and opening his hands wide after a successful innings. His name signifies ‘one who’s at the top’ and Shikhar Dhawan is the guy who’s right at the top as far as Indian cricket is concerned.

Alastair Cook

Alastair Cook

England may have had a troubled Ashes series in Australia, but Alastair Cook’s batting performances have been integral to the team as ever. Though England lost the fourth test at Melbourne, Cook’s batting efforts saw him become the youngest batsman to make 8,000 runs surpassing Sachin Tendulkar‘s previously held record. And again, despite England’s whitewash in Australia, Alastair Cook’s batting performances have endured for the entire season even as many of his team-mates have succumbed to the pressure of failing to meet expectations.

Joe Root

Joe Root

Technically, Joe Root made his debut for England in 2012, during the English tour to India. But even his debuting is excluded, Joe Root’s compilation of runs in this season has been phenomenal for a 22-year old making him a household name not just in his native country and county, but all over the world. His debut success was followed by an emphatic performance in New Zealand’s tour to England which only made him a ‘can’t-do-without- as far as the English team was concerned as the season progressed by.

Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli

Though Virat Kohli has been a part of the Indian test squad for a couple of years now, his true test as a test-playing cricketer came about in the aftermath of Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement from tests, a few months ago. Pipped to be the new guy in the no.4 batting position in an all-important tour to South Africa, a position held for nearly a quarter of a century by Tendulkar, Kohli showed a distinct aptitude to play at that position with two solid knocks in the first test; performances, that immediately catapulted him to a natural at that spot with no transitional problems.

Cheteshwar Pujara

Cheteshwar Pujara

The sublimeness of Pujara was felt yet again during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as he piled on runs and misery on the hapless Australians. That series saw Pujara race away to be the second fastest Indians to make 1,000 test runs. His consistency was a point that came to be noticed time and again, even as his natural flair continued to impress cricket lovers across countries.

Murali Vijay

Murali Vijay

One of the most underrated Indian cricketers, Vijay’s name has often been over-shadowed by his more aggressive peers. The 2013 season however brought forth a different manifestation of Vijay making him the first choice as far as the opening slot went. Patience and fortitude have many a times been Vijay’s weapons of choice this year accounting for him outshining and outlasting his team-mates who have often fallen prey and lost their wickets due to their haste.

Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen

His detractors are many, but when it comes to matching him on-field – in any cricketing format – there’s none like Kevin Pietersen. After spending a considerable portion of the start of the season off cricketing action, on account of injury, Pietersen’s comeback marked a few resounding knocks. He’s been one of the handful of English players who have done well on the Australian soil in the ongoing Ashes series, playing the game in his flamboyant and dare-devil manner ignoring criticisms about his style of play, endearing him all the more to his fans across the world.

Ian Bell

Ian Bell

Ian Bell’s Australian Ashes series may not be coming along all that well, but he’s definitely been one of those English players who wrecked apart many a bowling attack at the start of the season. His performances in the English Ashes series were particularly noteworthy, as he notched two centuries in the opening two Ashes matches and became the fourth English batsmen to have made three consecutive centuries in three consecutive Ashes matches (Sydney, 2010-11, Nottingham 2013 and Lord’s, 2013).

David Warner

David Warner

England’s nemesis for probably this entire season, David Warner has however been Australia’s star test batsman for this year. From the perilous nature of its cricketing legacy at the start of the year to the productive phase that it’s come to, David Warner has been the rescuer of Australian batting innings on more than a few occasions. The ongoing Ashes series has been the perfect dose of positiveness to an otherwise troubled and ill-timed cricketing outing of David Warner.

Michael Clarke

Michael Clarke

The Australian captain has made the news for wrong reasons, just like many of his team-mates. But the year has still proved to be quite fruitful for the batsman. Though his team lost quite embarrassingly in its trips to India and England earlier this year, Michael Clarke’s batting performances kept the Australian momentum going. In the ongoing Ashes series against England too, Clarke has come out all guns blazing which has only boosted Australia’s chances in test cricket, going into the New Year.Batsmen who missed out: Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Hamish Rutherford, Chris Rogers, Brad Haddin and Jonathan Trott

Special Tribute: Jacques Kallis and Sachin Tendulkar, two of the finest test players who retirement stopped the cricketing world in its paces. These were players who were a class apart and whose performances never dipped low. They always rose to the occasion making their team, their country and their fans proud to watch them play the game, the way it was meant to be played.

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and not reflective of the website as a whole.