Virat Kohli was ranked fourth by Alyssa Healy in the Fab Four of modern-era cricket. Apart from Kohli, Australia’s Steve Smith, England’s Joe Root, and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson are considered to be the four best batters of this modern age of cricket.
Kohli, Root, Williamson, and Smith not only led their teams to unprecedented heights but also established themselves as true legends. Since 2014, they have outperformed everyone else.
Barring a few other players, batting revolved primarily around the four of them, and even today, ten years later, as they near the end of their careers, Kohli, Root, Williamson, and Smith continue to reign supreme.
The discussion about who is the finest of the Fab Four has raged for years, and Alyssa Healy, captain of the Australian women's team, was asked to rank them in order of greatest to least great. And, as unexpected as it is, Healy ranked Kohli last in the order.
"They're all very great. But if I'm purely basing it on numbers, I'm going to put Kohli as fourth. But I actually rate him as No. 1 in everything else. But if you're basing it on numbers, Kohli is going to sit fourth for me. I'm looking at it analytically. I think about how much cricket he plays and that's where I look at his stats. And they are remarkable based on the sheer amount of cricket he plays and the pressure he is under. But if I look at it analytically, he is going to sit fourth," Healy said on the 'LiSTNR Sport' podcast.
Kohli is unquestionably the finest white-ball batsman among the four, but he falls behind in Tests. Kohli was front of the pack in Tests about five years ago, but following an almost three-year drought, he slid down the pecking order.
Root is currently the leading Test batsman in terms of runs and hundreds, thanks to his exceptional form and consistency.
However, for Alyssa Healy, the no.1 rank in Fab 4 belongs to ex-Kiwi captain Kane Williamson. According to Healy, Williamson is a one-man army, but Kohli has one of the best sources of assistance in the form of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and others.
Healy believes that in New Zealand, it has 'just been' Williamson for a long time, as seen by his numbers. Smith, like Root, has had aid around him.
"Williamson has carried the whole New Zealand team, whereas, for Virat, he is the greatest player in the world, let's be real. But with him, it's like someone else is always there. Rohit Sharma can score hundreds. KL Rahul can score a 100. Even [Ravindra] Jadeja can score a 100 at No. 8. He has always got someone else, but I feel that if Williamson doesn't make those runs, New Zealand don't get anywhere near winning," Healy said further.
Virat Kohli will be in action for India when Bangladesh visits for a two-Test series starting September 19.
