Top 5 No. 4 Australian Test batsmen of all time

The number 4 is a pivotal position in any Test match batting line-up and the reasons for that are manifold. That batsman not only needs to have the appetite for big runs, the ability to play strokes once the old ball and help the team get to a big score, but to also ensure that he has the technique to face the new ball if a couple of wickets fall early.

Over the course of their cricketing history, Australia has produced some of the world's finest batsmen and some of the finest No.4 have played for the Test side over the years. Here is a look at five of the finest:

#5 Damien Martyn

One of the biggest problems for talented batsmen coming through in the Australian domestic circuit back in the 1990s was the dearth of places and same was the case with Damien Martyn.

However, when he did eventually make it to the team in the early noughties, he turned out to be a pillar for the Australian middle-order and was a hugely important constituent of an all-conquering side. Martyn had an excellent technique and was comfortable against extreme pace, seam, swing as well as spin.

He was also one of Australia's best batsmen when it came to dealing with spinners in the subcontinent. In addition to that, his elegant stroke-making and the gift of timing were a treat for all cricket fans.

Martyn played 40 Test matches at No.4 for Australia, scoring 2635 runs at an average of 46.22. He made 7 centuries, in addition to 14 half-centuries.

#4 Allan Border

Allan Border was responsible for turning the team into an excellent side

The former Australian captain, who was responsible for turning the team into an excellent side following the dark days of the early to mid-1980s, was also one of the team's leading batsmen.

Border played 156 Test matches for Australia and out of those, played only 61 at No.4. Despite that, he is the 3rd highest run-scorer for Australia at that position, with a tally of 3783 runs and a brilliant average of 50.44.

He might not have been the most gifted batsman of his generation but what set him apart from many of his peers was a bloody-minded refusal to give up his wicket. This approach often made him a middle-order bulwark for Australia.

Border scored 8 centuries and 21 half-centuries as a No.4 for Australia and there is no doubt that he was one of their very best.

#3 Mark Waugh

Mark Waugh was one of the most effortless stroke-makers in the game

He was probably one of the most effortless stroke-makers in the game during the 1990s, and throughout that time, Mark Waugh made the No. 4 position in the Australian batting line-up his own.

Out of the 128 Test matches that he played between 1991 and 2002, Waugh batted at No.4 in 110 and remains Australia's most prolific player in that position. Waugh made 6662 runs over the course of those Tests, remaining a fixture in the batting line up during the 1990s.

He averaged 42.43, a bit of a disappointment for someone who had such batting prowess. He scored 16 centuries and as many as 39 half-centuries at that position.

#2 Greg Chappell

Greg Chappell is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen to have ever played for Australia

He is rightly regarded as one of the greatest batsmen to have ever played Test cricket and most certainly, one of the best ever to have represented Australia. Greg Chappell's Test career spanned 14 years from 1970 to 1984 and he played a total of 87 Tests.

He batted at No. 4 in 54 of those games and remains among the best in that position to have ever played the game. Chappell's game was centered around an excellent technique, the ability to play strokes off some of the best bowlers in the world and his eye-catching stroke-making.

In those 54 Tests, he scored 4316 runs and that remains the second highest aggregate among all Australian number 4s. However, unlike Mark Waugh, he backed that up with a brilliant average of 59.12 and also scored 15 centuries, along with 19 half-centuries.

#1 Steven Smith

Steven Smith's rise as a batsman has been quite incredible

The current Australian captain is joint 5th along with Mike Hussey on the all-time list for the most prolific No.4 batsmen in the team's history, but it would not be long before he surpasses everyone.

Steven Smith's rise as a batsman has been quite incredible, considering the fact that he was selected as a leg-spinner and used to bat in the lower order. However, from 2013 onwards, he became a top order batsman and has since then gone on to become one of the world's best.

Smith does not appear to have the technique of someone who is supposed to be a successful Test batsman, but it is effective and over the past few seasons, he has scored prodigiously for Australia all over the world.

The No. 4 position has become the most feared for the opposition whenever they face Australia. Smith's numbers at the position are equally brilliant and reflect the enormity of his hunger for runs. In only 24 Test matches, he has made 2531 runs and scored 10 centuries, in addition to 9 half-centuries. However, it is his average of 84.36 that places him on a rarefied level.