4 players who did well in Tests despite being touted as limited-overs specialists
Cricket is a very unique sport which requires an individual to adjust to different situations and at the same time possess different skill sets to succeed in each of three formats of the game.
Undoubtedly, the need to have the right mix of strokeplay, patience, and ability to counter seam, swing and raw pace and temperament are some of the traits that one can find common in all the great batsman round the world, be it Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Joe Root, AB de Villiers and Kane Williamson or any other greats of the past.
All of these star players have the ability to transform from looking like a million dollars in a T20 game to a gritty batsman looking to grind it out and score ugly runs. These are what we call all-format greats, batsmen who have the ability to transform their game according to conditions and the situation.
There has been a lot of apprehension about India's decision to try Rohit Sharma as an opener in Test cricket and understandably so. Rohit has never opened in FC cricket and his returns in Tests have been underwhelming, to say the least. Add to it the recent examples of the failure of ODI openers like Aaron Finch and Jason Roy to make a successful transition to Tests, and the apprehension grows even more.
However, as we have seen in the past, sometimes the best solutions are not the obvious ones, and this article is an aim to highlight four players who did well in Tests despite being touted as limited-overs specialists.
#4 AB de Villiers
There are batsmen blessed with raw skills, some are blessed natural flair while some are blessed with technique and temperament which helps them to withstand everything that comes their way at the top level.
However, few have all those aforementioned attributes tuned to the zenith and AB de Villiers is one of them. From slaying the bowling units to all corners of the ground in white-ball cricket to playing a perfect blockathon in Test cricket, de Villiers has been one of those few players who have excelled in all formats of the game, despite early apprehensions about his future in Test cricket.
From scoring his first double hundred in India back in 2008 to helping his side to a well earned draw at Adelaide, where he and du Plessis played a perfect blockathon to deny the Australia a win, the dashing right-hander has made a massive impact in the longest format of the game.
AB de Villiers signed off last year after having played pivotal roles in South Africa's Test series win against India and Australia as he finished his career as a genuine all-time great irrespective of the format of the game.
Test Career: Matches - 114, Runs - 8765, Average - 50.66, Centuries -22
Also see – World Test Championship Schedule