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Not many batsmen from outside the subcontinent have cracked the code of playing slow bowling. They might be adept at playing spin in their own backyard, but, similar to how Asian batsmen struggle in conditions that assist fast bowling, they find it difficult to cope with the turning ball in spin-friendly conditions, which is the true test of a batsman’s ability versus spin.There are, however, a few exceptions, as always.Here are the top 10 players of spin bowling from outside the subcontinent in the last 20 years:
#10 Graeme Smith
The recently retired Graeme Smith was often derided for his ungainly batting technique, but it was his efficiency in scoring runs at the top of the order for South Africa that ultimately mattered, and he didn’t disappoint on that count. His record in the subcontinent, much like anywhere else in the world, was exemplary, scoring 1,728 runs from 21 Tests at an average of 49.37.
The one aberration in his Test record, however, was the fact that he averaged a relatively moderate 35.91 and didn’t score a single hundred in India, but that was more to do with his shortcomings against Zaheer Khan than any weakness against playing spin.
#9 Alastair Cook
England were completely written off when they visited India for a 4-match Test series in 2012, especially with the hosts eager for revenge following their 4-0 whitewash on English soil a year earlier. Considering the fact that England had suffered a 3-0 humiliation against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) earlier that year, questions were raised about England’s capability of winning even a single Test, let alone the series.
English skipper Alastair Cook, however, answered his team’s critics in emphatic fashion by scoring 562 runs from 4 Tests at an average of 80.28, reflecting his mastery over spin bowling in the process, and led his side to a historic 2-1 series victory, their first on Indian soil in 28 years. His overall record in the subcontinent is not too bad, either, having scored 1,802 runs from 18 Tests at an average of 56.31.
#8 Mike Hussey
Mike Hussey had to wait a really long time to make his Test debut for Australia, but there was no stopping him once he did. From 79 Tests, he amassed a total of 6,235 runs at an average of 51.52 with 19 centuries. He started off his cricket career as an opening batsman but made the transition to bat in the middle-order for Australia with consummate ease, highlighting his versatility as a batsman.
What further illustrates his adaptability is the fact that, despite growing up on the fast and bouncy wickets of Perth, where there is very little exposure to spin bowling, he never had any glaring weakness against spin bowling and was able to not just defend but dictate terms to the spinners, as well.
#7 Jacques Kallis
South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis excelled at doing most things on a cricket field, so it comes as no surprise that he was top-notch in regards to facing spin bowling, too.
From 25 Tests in Asia, he scored 2,058 runs at an average of 55.62, with a highest score of 173 against India in Nagpur, making him the only non-Asian batsman of the last 20 years to have scored over 2,000 Test runs in this part of the world.
#6 Shivnarine Chanderpaul
Shivnarine Chanderpaul often tends to get overlooked when we talk about the great batsmen of the modern era, but the reason for it is not too clear when you take a look at his Test match numbers. He has, after all, racked up a colossal 11,684 runs in 158 Tests at 53.10 after making his Test debut, against England, way back in March 1994.
He has always looked extremely assured against spin bowling in particular, as illustrated by his subcontinental record of 1,850 runs from 27 Tests at an average just under 50. Admittedly, he has been not one of the most pleasing batsmen to watch, but his 100 off 69 balls against Australia at Georgetown, Guyana, in 2003, when he took a liking to the spin duo of Stuart Macgill and Brad Hogg, does indicate an ability to take the attack to the bowlers when needed. He has, perhaps, been restricted from playing more knocks of such nature because of being part of a weak West Indies side for a large part of his career.
#5 AB de Villiers
AB de Villiers, who can rightly lay claim to being the best batsman in the world today, is undoubtedly one of the preeminent players of spin bowling of the current era. What makes De Villiers so good in regards to facing spin bowling is the fact that he is not afraid to use his feet and come down the track in order to nullify the spin whenever possible, unlike most batsmen from outside Asia who, to a large extent, rely on the sweep shot to score runs. De Villiers’ tendency to come down the track at every given opportunity and be on the constant lookout for runs often leads to the bowler then pitching short, which the 30-year old is capable of taking full toll of as a result of being extremely agile in his feet movement.
He has scored 1,488 runs from 17 Tests at an average of 59.52 in the sub-continent, with both of his double hundreds in Test cricket till date also coming in Asia: 278* against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi (2010) and 217* against India in Ahmedabad (2008).
#4 Hashim Amla
South Africa’s Hashim Amla is known to have a calm demeanour off the field, and that certainly seems to hold him in good stead while playing spin bowling.
What also aids Amla when it comes to playing spin bowling is the fact that he uses his wrists to good effect, which could probably be due to his Asian background, and constantly rotates the strike, thereby never allowing spinners to mount the pressure of dot balls on him. The best example of this was the 2-match Test series between South Africa and India in India in 2010, when Amla went about his business serenely and notched up scores of 253*, 114 and 123* against bowlers of the ilk of Harbhajan Singh.
#3 Andy Flower
Given his ability, Andy Flower can consider himself extremely unfortunate to have not had the opportunity of playing in a stronger Test side. If he had done so, one can safely say that a lot more of his runs would have come in winning causes rather than draws or losses.
While he was an excellent all-round player, his ability against spin, in particular, was second to none. This came to the fore during a two-match Test series against India in 2000, when he made scores of 183*, 70, 55 and 232*.
#2 Matthew Hayden
Matthew Hayden’s rise to prominence as an international cricketer came during the famous 2001 series against India, when he scored 549 runs from 3 Tests at 109.80 with a highest score of 203.
Although playing spin bowling did not seem to come naturally to Hayden, which explains his over-reliance on the sweep as opposed to using his feet: a method considered the norm for batsmen of the subcontinent. The burly left-hander’s record of 1663 runs at an average of 50.39 from 19 Tests in the sub-continent is up there with the very best players of spin bowling.
#1 Brian Lara
Brian Lara had to be an excellent player against all types of bowling for him to finish up with the 11,953 runs from 131 Tests at 52.88 that he did, and he sure was.
Extremely nimble-footed and blessed with the ability to manoeuvre the ball through the smallest of gaps, Lara amassed 1,463 runs from 12 Tests at an average over 60 in the subcontinent. A significant chunk of those runs – 688 to be precise – came in 3 Tests against Sri Lanka in 2001 at a Bradman-esque average of 114.66, with even Muttiah Muralitharan, one of the greatest spin bowlers of all-time, not having the wherewithal to match up to Lara’s genius.
