Virat is the best batsman ever in Indian cricket. Even if this means I need to give him higher marks than Tendulkar, Gavaskar and Dravid (well those are the only three there is any doubt, if at all).
Virat has played out barely half his career and he needs to play at this level for a few more years to have comparable stats. But what has made make this bold statement, is his ability to constantly improve and adapt. His focus on goals.
Two stats of IPL 2016 - 36 sixes, 4 centuries in IPL 2016 (at the end of the 13 league matches for RCB) are enough. For someone who publicly stated more than once a month or two earlier (during Asia Cup and World Cup) that his game is not suited for hitting sixes and he depends one fours to achieve the desired to strike rates; his transformation as six hitter is mind blowing. As I am writing this blog he has the maximum numbers of sixes to his credit - ahead to McCullum, Gayle, Raina, ABD at the likes.
The other transformation is scoring 100s, he had not scored one in his entire career and suddenly in the space of 2 weeks he has scored 4. That is truly amazing. There is no other batsman who has adapted and changed himself with such impact. Hence he is my best batsman ever.
Worth noting - I am not giving him the best batsman tag, in the middle of his career, because of almost 850+ runs in 13 matches in IPL. Yes, his consistency in crunch matches is a huge plus. He has done again and again for his teams over the past 18 months. But for his ability to score runs - I would said the his performance in the 6-12 months has been the best 6-12 months for any batsman in the history of Indian cricket.
But his ability to focus on goals and to transform himself - tells me that he is not just having the best 12 months for any Indian batsman but he his the best ever Indian batsman.
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