There are a number of quality batsmen going around in world cricket today, and it is not easy to pick one particular player and label him as the best. Though former Australia pacer Brett Lee, recently, picked Virat Kohli as the best, Ricky Ponting feels Steve Smith and Kane Williamson also fall in the same bracket to that of the Indian star.
With the incredible form Kohli has shown across the world of late, scoring runs in Australia, West Indies and in India, he has become one of the most feared batsmen. In the 2016 World T20, Kohli was a run-machine, scoring an amazing 273 runs, with the India captain then continuing his amazing form in the IPL, scoring four hundreds.
While Ponting is a big fan of Kohli, he is not in favour of making comparisons, and loves to see them (Kohli, Smith, Williamson and Joe Root) score runs against all teams. But he did concede his love for Kohli and his hunger to win matches for India.
"Kohli probably has got age on his side. His ODI career till this stage has been incredible. We also know what he did in last year's (sic) IPL (hitting four hundreds). He is an ultra-skilled and talented player. More importantly, he has got the attitude to want to be the best he can be and wants to lead his country in the best way possible," PTI quoted Ponting as saying.
The former Australian captain believes all these players have the class and skill to score big runs, but it may all boil down to who masters the mind game. Kohli, Smith, Williamson and Root might be scoring big runs at present, but at one point or the other, their form will dip, and it is at that juncture, where their character will come into play.
"To tell you the truth, I don't really care (who the best batsmen is at the moment). I just love to see all these guys playing (Kohli, Smith, Williamson and Root). Smith and Williamson are in the same boat. Whoever I guess masters the mind games the best will be the one who ends up with the best career record," Ponting said.
Besides the above mentioned players, there are some players, including David Warner and AB De Villiers, who also fall in the bracket of the elite batsmen in the world today.
