3 great batters who could never do well in Australia in Tests ft. MS Dhoni 

Since its inception in 1877, Test cricket has witnessed the mastery of countless batting titans, who have etched their names in the history books due to their sheer prowess and command.

It is needless to say that Test cricket is the toughest format of the game, as it challenges a player to their core competence. Toiling hard for moment after moment, session after session, and day after day, the format really tests the true character of a player.

While playing Test cricket is itself not a piece of cake, grinding away at different venues requires certain skillsets for the players. Especially for a visiting batter, playing Down Under with sun-baked pitches, express pace bowling and boisterous crowds, becomes onerous.

Having said that, many batting greats, including the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Kumar Sangakkara, Sir Alastair Cook, and Virat Kohli, have dominated in the tough conditions.

However, there have been some such maestros whose batting prowess, though universally acknowledged, could never fully translate into numbers in Australia. Take Babar Azam, for example, who is currently on the Australian tour for a three-match Test series.

Babar is considered one of the generational talents coming out of Pakistan. However, the 29-year-old has struggled quite a lot in the Australian conditions. In five innings of the series, Babar has scored only 103 runs at an average of 20.60. These are extremely poor numbers for a batter who averages over 50 after 44 Test matches elsewhere around the world.

On that note, let's take a look at the other three great batters who could never do well in Australia in Tests.

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#3 Dean Elgar

South Africa v India - 1st Test

Dean Elgar played his last Test innings for South Africa in the ongoing second Test match against India in Cape Town. A gritty batter, Elgar announced his retirement from the game and will end his career as one of the most underrated opening batters of his generation.

In 86 Tests, the left-hander made 5347 runs at an average of 37.65, including 23 half-centuries and 14 centuries. Elgar, however, didn't have a memorable Test debut as he scored a pair of ducks in his first game for South Africa.

The match was played in Perth in 2012. Four years later, Elgar redeemed himself by scoring a wonderful century (127) at the same venue. However, that was about it for the southpaw, who never really found his groove while playing in Australia.

Elgar failed to get past the 26-run mark in his next nine innings in the country. After playing 13 Test innings in Australia, Elgar scored only 217 runs at an inferior average of 16.69. He also recorded four ducks in those innings.

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#2 Brendon McCullum

New Zealand v Australia - 1st Test: Day 1

One of the finest New Zealand cricketers ever, Brendon McCullum also had an unsatisfactory record while playing in Australia.

The hard-hitting gloveman often took an aggressive approach in red-ball cricket as well. As a result, he amassed 6,453 runs at an average of 38.64 and a strike rate of over 64 after 101 Test matches.

McCullum's numbers, however, in Australia reads a shabby 389 runs at an average of 24.31. He played 17 Test innings Down Under but never really tasted success with the bat.

He made only two half-centuries in his neighbouring country and failed to go past 20 runs 11 times. McCullum's last Test in Australia was the first-ever Pink-ball day-night match, played in Adelaide in 2015.

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#1 MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni has a poor record in Australia.

An enigma in Indian cricket, MS Dhoni was one of the most gifted batters in the history of the game. While his tranquil character and astute in-game decisions always grabbed eyeballs, Dhoni's ability to soak in pressure situations and accumulate runs was quite laudable.

Although his white-ball stats are quite astonishing, Dhoni played 90 Test matches and scored 4,876 runs at an average of 38.09. He smashed six hundreds and 33 half-centuries as well.

Australia, however, didn't turn out well for the right-hander, who regularly struggled to find runs there. Dhoni toured Down Under thrice and could only notch up a single fifty after 18 Test innings.

His career average of 38.09 almost halved in Australia, where he scored 311 runs at 19.43 runs per match. With his hard hands and bare feet movements, the former Indian captain was caught behind 11 out of 18 times he batted in Australia.