Top 11 Batsmen against pace bowling in the last four decades

Mohinder Amarnath

Amarnath squeezes into this list, just ahead of greats like Zaheer Abbas, Mohammad Yousuf, Younis Khan and Brian Lara. For a whole year during the 1982-83 season, Amarnath was the best batsman against pace around the world, as certified by none other than Sir Vivian Richards himself.

Amarnath is only second to Gavaskar with 877 runs at 54.81 in West Indies during their heyday from 1970-1995. But the crown jewel in Amarnath’s career is his 598 runs in 5 Tests at 66.44 against a bowling lineup that included Holding, Roberts and Marshall.

Overall, despite playing below his potential and featuring in just 69 Tests, Amarnath averaged 55.66 in Australia and 54.81 in West Indies. Apart from that he also averaged 57 in Pakistan proving beyond doubt his capabilities when it came to handling pace.

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Surprising Omissions

Younis Khan too misses out because of his low average of 32.6 in South Africa, similar to that of Dravid’s but without Dravid’s numbers in England. He averages 52.22 in England but 43.16 in Australia, lower than many other batsmen in the above list. His average overall is impressive – a whopping 53.94 – and would probably put him at No.12 in the list, the man closest to the above set of players.

Mohammad Yousuf averages 29.61 against Australia and 31.88 in Australia. Although brilliant against England, his averages of 26 in South Africa and 29.75 against South Africa overall, keep him out of this list. AB de Villiers is another person who is a surprising omission.

Although AB de Villiers’ capabilities were never under any doubt, he averaged 44.73 in Australia and 54.50 in England, besides never having to face his own pacemen. AB de Villiers’ numbers are overshadowed in whites by those of Amla. AB de Villiers also averages only 39 against New Zealand and 42.21 overall against England.

Another great who misses out is Inzamam-ul-Haq because his averages in Australia and South Africa are 30.87 and 31.78 respectively.