Ab de Villiers vs Michael Clarke vs Kevin Pietersen

[PlayerComparisons]

Three players with very high ceilings. How would you rank them?

 

[BazBall21]

De Villiers 1st. Will decide on 2nd tomorrow.

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

KP probably dead last here…in all categories

 

[Kraken]

AB, Clarke, KP the order. In all aspects TBH

 

[Majestic]

AB
KP
Clarke

That's my order.

 

[sledger]

KP had the highest ceiling of the three imo, but didn't reach it, whereas the other two had lower ceilings (which were higher than the level of performance than KP obtained) but reached them. So yeah I'd rate KP as last out of this three.

 

[sledger]

That said, if there was ever a situation where a special, one-off, mad, Stokes-type innings was needed, I'd choose KP every time.

 

[Krypto]

This is a bit of a disservice against Clarke and KP putting them against a revolutionary player like AB as well as the differences in what they needed to do for their teams etc . However on the list AB is miles ahead , Clarke only pips him as a captain .

 

[sledger]

This is a bit of a disservice against Clarke and KP putting them against a revolutionary player like AB as well as the differences in what they needed to do for their teams etc . However on the list AB is miles ahead , Clarke only pips him as a captain .

I don't think it's a disservice at all. KP and AB in particular have very similar test records in terms of duration, games played, runs scored, centuries. It's quite a logical comparison imo.

Edit: In fact Clarke's test record is also very similar tbh.

 

[subshakerz]

AB did a lot of downhill skiing but he had virtually no weaknesses in his game or his record. He was blocking Ashwin-Jadeja on minefields for an entire day and then comfortably playing out peak Johnson while the rest of the SA batters were getting dismantled. And he ended his career at his peak and didn't play for a year before that otherwise his record could have been better.

 

[trundler]

De Villiers over Clarke but not by a lot. Those 2 over Pietersen by relatively more.

AB did a lot of downhill skiing but he had virtually no weaknesses in his game or his record. He was blocking Ashwin-Jadeja on minefields for an entire day and then comfortably playing out peak Johnson while the rest of the SA batters were getting dismantled. And he ended his career at his peak and didn't play for a year before that otherwise his record could have been better.

His record would be worse if he'd played when his form instead of deserting his team.

 

[BazBall21]

De Villiers is definitely the best. The poll should probably have been between the other two. Have generally rated Pietersen just in front for his range of great knocks and Clarke's slightly easier home conditions but I might switch. KP's home conditions were still pretty good and Clarke has some equally impressive feats like his record against SA.

 

[Krypto]

I don't think it's a disservice at all. KP and AB in particular have very similar test records in terms of duration, games played, runs scored, centuries. It's quite a logical comparison imo.

Edit: In fact Clarke's test record is also very similar tbh.

KP batted 4 and had a anchor role if your talking about his skillset yes he could've easily played the enforcer or stroke player but it wasn't what he was suppose to do . He has the 8th best average as a number four with 6000 or more runs .

AB was the stroke maker and more as a number 5 and 6 however also Opened for 35 innings and played as keeper for some matches as well however is known for the way he played and what he did similar to a Gilchrest but higher in the order however the dual ability and ability to bat multiple positions and situations is what makes him different and an all time great thus cannot be compared to the 2 in question however they are more comparable .

The only reason Clarke can be mentioned is he is arguably the greatest number 5 in test history however was a standard conventional 4 or 5 batsman but it is important to note he couldn't transition to higher in the batting order , the reason for this is debatable . Thus comparable to those of likeness .

They are completely different players and is in different spectrums thus a disservice , the impact AB had on the sport overall will dwarf most cricketers also as a test player he is in a different category then KP and Clarke . Clarke however is possibly underrated due to him batting like a number 4 at 5 and is a testament to his gritty nature , great game understanding etc . I am a huge fan of Clarke and AB but they are not comparable imo . AB is a jack of all trades , KP was an contradiction as an aggressive anchor and Clarke is similar to KP but more a no 4 who batted 5 etc . However you have a All time great , Potentially one the most underrated cricketers and a unconventional approach at 4 to round of the 3 . Doesn't mean that they are all middle order they are comparable.

 

[sledger]

Tldr. Very comparable imo.

 

[GIMH]

For the bulk of KP's career, I reckon he'd have been picked in 'World XI' sides ahead of Clarke. Someone who gives a **** could probably look on this forum for a sample tbf. Clarke's peak was unreal though - but around that same time KP played some of his best innings.

For me it's AB, KP, Clarke

 

[BazBall21]

For the bulk of KP's career, I reckon he'd have been picked in 'World XI' sides ahead of Clarke. Someone who gives a **** could probably look on this forum for a sample tbf. Clarke's peak was unreal though - but around that same time KP played some of his best innings.

For me it's AB, KP, Clarke

Yeah Pietersen was always rated very highly but his final resume is somewhat underwhelming

 

[sledger]

Yeah Pietersen was always rated very highly but his final resume is somewhat underwhelming

I agree, but the fact we can still say this despite him playing over 100 tests and averaging nearly 50 just emphasises what a remarkable player he was imo.

 

[BazBall21]

Yeah, but his average of 47 and an iffy away record is underwhelming for someone who had decent batting conditions and played mostly in traditional prime years. Not specifically trying to put him down but there is a consensus among many on here that he is the finest England bat in the time between Boycott and Root which I don't really agree with.

 

[GIMH]

Yeah, but his average of 47 and an iffy away record is underwhelming for someone who had decent batting conditions and played mostly in traditional prime years. Not specifically trying to put him down but there is a consensus among many on here that he is the finest England bat in the time between Boycott and Root which I don't really agree with.

Who would you have ahead?

 

[OverratedSanity]

Who would you have ahead?

Gooch has a case. KP was close to Clarke and Amla for a few years but Gooch was pretty indisputably the best batsman in the world for a while.