Jacques Kallis - The 'Behemoth'

It is always said that cricket is a team game, well unless you have a player of Jacques Kallis‘ calibre who manages to do everything in an impeccable fashion – be it batting, bowling or fielding.Since his debut in late 1995, Kallis has been a pivotal player for South Africa.

Let us look at his stats now. His batting record is a testimony to the fact that he could play as a batsman alone. He has scored more than 11000 runs in both formats of the game. As far his batting is concerned, his batting average in tests (56.78) is better than the other batting greats of his time – Tendulkar, Lara, Ponting and Dravid. Add his ODI numbers to the equation; his ODI average (45.26) is more than that of Tendulkar, Ponting, Hayden, Ganguly and Lara.

His bowling stats are no less exceptional, with more than 270 wickets in both tests and ODIs and a healthy average in the early thirties. He has been used a bowler to stem the flow of runs as well as to break a partnership. Many a times, the amount of bounce he has extracted from the pitch has surprised batsmen. Also, he has 181 catches in tests and 125 catches in ODIs.

The hallmark of a great player is how crucial his performances have been in winning causes. Kallis’ batting average shoots up from 56 to 65 in tests won by SA, and from 45 to 52 in ODIs. His bowling numbers show a starker difference; his bowling average in test wins is 23 compared to the overall average of 32, and the corresponding figures for ODIs are 26 and 31.

In 2000, Wisden published a list of 5 greatest cricketers of all time voted by a panel of 100 cricket experts. The list included Bradman, Sobers, Jack Hobbs, Warne and Richards. Agreed, a World cup trophy is missing in his cabinet, but all said and done, along with Bradman and Sobers, Kallis should rank among the top three ever to have played this game.