5 prolific batsmen who have struggled against a particular team

It is quite impossible for a batsman to come out trumps in every innings against all opposition teams. They are bound to have days of struggle against every team, however, a few of them tend to have a torrid time against specific teams.Recently, New Zealand batsman Martin Guptills troubles against Australia have come to the fore in the ongoing Trans-Tasman series as he averages a mere 16.94 against them. Guptill may still be a struggler at the Test level, but even some of more prolific batsmen in world cricket have had their own nightmares against particular teams.Here are 5 popular modern-day batsmen who have not done too well against a specific opposition:

#5 Faf du Plessis vs Pakistan - 23.33

The Pakistani bowlers have caused some headaches for Faf du Plessis

Faf du Plessis is among the most reliable names in the current South African batting unit. He has played 29 Tests so far and averages 41.02 for his 1682 runs with 4 centuries against his name.

However, the talented Proteas batsman tends to hit a roadblock whenever he is facing the Pakistani team. du Plessis has scored 140 runs in 5 Tests against Pakistan and his average stands at a shabby 23.33 against them.

With a long way left to go in his career, Faf du Plessis has quite a lot of time to put things back on track.

#4 Murali Vijay vs West Indies - 17.62

Vijay has found the going tough against West Indies

Murali Vijay has been one of the most improved Indian batsmen in the past few years and the proof is visible in his consistency of late. However, there is just one team which has proved to be the Indian opener’s nemesis thus far, the West Indies.

Vijay has played 5 Test matches against the men from the Caribbean and scored only 141 runs at a poor average of slightly below 18. Comparatively, he has a much higher career average of over 41 and has done pretty well against most other teams.

Since India will be touring the West Indies later this year, Murali Vijay may have a brilliant opportunity to set the record straight.

#3 Brendon McCullum vs South Africa - 26.13

McCullum has primarily been at sea against the Proteas

Brendon McCullum has been quite a revelation with the bat in the past few years despite being pretty average in the early part of his career. But his record against South Africa is one aspect of his otherwise successful career that he would have wanted to improve.

McCullum has played 13 Tests against the Proteas and scored just 575 runs at a none-too-great average of slightly over 26. This is much lower than his career average of 38.64 and goes to show how much he struggled against South Africa.

Unfortunately for Brendon McCullum, though, he has no time left to make amends as he has drawn the curtains on his career.

#2 Virat Kohli vs England - 20.12

Kohli has had a torrid time against England in Tests

Virat Kohli’s Test record is improving with every match as he continues to notch up runs in heaps. But Kohli will need to address his issues against England if he wants to stamp his legacy on world cricket.

Everyone remembers how he struggled on India's last tour to England, especially against the likes of James Anderson. However, even apart from that, Kohli has not at all been convincing against them as he has managed just 322 runs in 9 Tests at a poor average of just over 20.

This is completely in contrast to Virat Kohli’s overall average of 44.02 and is a pointer towards his struggles against the England team.

#1 AB de Villiers vs Bangladesh - 17.25

de Villiers has been poor against the Bangladeshis in Tests

AB de Villiers may arguably be the best batsman in world cricket, however, his Test form against Bangladesh has been quite disastrous, to say the least. The Proteas great has struggled to score runs against the emerging sub-continent team.

In 4 Tests that he has played against them, de Villiers has just 69 runs at an average of 17.25 and not even a single half-century. These are shocking stats as opposed to his 50-plus average in his Test career so far.

There may still be scope for AB de Villiers to improve on his appalling performance against Bangladesh, but it can be a difficult job considering he may not play too many Tests against them.