The Rising Stars Of Cricket

1. Steven Smith

Tests(2014)-1146 runs in 17 innings in Tests. Average-89.90. Highest run scorer for Australia.

1146 runs at an average of 87.07.in 9 Tests says all about this young man who’s become a stalwart in the Aussie batting line-up. From Australia’s lead spinner and No. 8, Steven Smith has steadily risen up the batting ranks to become one of the central figures in their line-up, and arguably their most comfortable player of spin.

Thirty-three ODIS. Twenty T20s. Five Tests. Two fifties. Both in Tests.

That was Steven Smith before March 14, 2013. Six-hundred and forty-three days later, he was captain of his country.

In the first innings of Tests this year, Smith has averaged 107.12, with five centuries when the match was there to be set up. With a 10 innings minimum, Smith is second only to Don Bradman on Australia’s all-time first-innings batting averages.

The unique thing about Smithy is how busy he is at the crease, which allows him to not get overwhelmed with the situation. It must be said that Smith must be a captain’s dream; no Warner-like controversies for him.

Not only his batting, his fielding is a great asset to the team, for he is known for his fancy dives, daring catches and quick moves. He is one player who has managed to stand up to all the expectations. Whenever his team needed him, he supported them well and didn’t disappoint them.

Owing to his brilliant form, a lot depends on him at the upcoming ICC World Cup. Apart from Test matches, he also has 2 Fifties and 3 Centuries under his belt this year. So, if Australia was to do good and win the World Cup, Steven Smith is the man who can lead his team to victory.

2015 has to be a great year for Smith. Be it the upcoming Tri Series against India and England, the World Cup or the ODI match series against England later this summer, either as a captain or as a vice captain, a lot depends on him if Australia wishes to continue their grand record of 2014 into 2015.

He is just a cricket nut who works things out for himself. And, to his great benefit, does his homework.

2. Joe Root

Unlike other English batsmen, Joe Root has managed to show his maturity at a mere age of 24, performing well at whatever position he is asked to play. He was initially asked to open, then demoted to No.6 and then brought back to No.3. Making his debut against India in 2012, he scored a patient 73 of 229 balls giving the world a glimpse of a rising star that he was. He rarely gives away his wicket easily, managing to score big in Test matches, tiring the opposition in their attempt to get him out. His stubbornness at the crease might have made the great Geoffrey Boycott remind him of himself.

At such an age, he has showed such brilliant skills, managing to surprise every cricket pundit. Following weak performances in the Ashes in Australia, he came back strongly with a maiden ODI century against West Indies followed by a double century against Sri Lanka and two hundreds against India later in Tests.

Four hundreds in an English summer, three big ones in Tests, all of them unbeaten, capped by an exuberant ODI hundred against India on his home ground, represented a summer of transformation, one in which he developed from talented young buck to incontestably an integral part of this England side in both formats. A Test record of 777 runs at 97.12 last summer, at only 23, was exceptional; his one-day form until that wonderful final flourish was run-of-the-mill by comparison.

With no Trott, Cook or Pietersen in the world cup squad, a lot depends on this young fellow who must step in and take the charge if England aims to do well. He has the ability to bat for long and not succumb under pressure and thus score very well. With a number of poor performances by the English team, recent being the 5-2 loss against Sri Lanka, a lot of English fans will be hoping for a turn of tables this year and for that to happen, Root must take responsibility, capitalise on each and every opportunity that is given to him, and keep his patience and stubbornness intact and carry forward his form into 2015.

He definitely is the player to remove early in the World Cup for opposition sides. Captain Eoin Morgan must make apt decisions about the batting order to ensure that it revolves around Root.

3. Virat Kohli

This man doesn’t need any description. He has taken the cricketing world by force and announced himself as the next big thing in world cricket already. It was in Australia in 2011 that Virat Kohli announced himself as an emerging talent in Test cricket.

He is a testimony to how transient the life of a batsman can be. What a difference a few months can make. As the English summer wore on earlier this year, it seemed that the English seamers, led by James Anderson, had only to put the ball in the channel around the off stump to get him to nick on the off. It was in Australia in 2011, when the grandest of Indian batsmen collectively slumped into terminal decline, that Kohli announced himself as an emerging talent in Test cricket. Now back as the lone survivor from that top order and as the leader of a young batting group, he has owned the stage. Something would have to go horribly amiss for him to not be placed alongside the greats he has succeeded when he finishes his career.

He has scored with an average of 47 through 2014, and his flamboyant stroke-play combined with the sound batting temperament makes him the number 5 in the ES Test XI.

Tests(in 2014): 20 innings. 847 runs.  4 Centuries, 2 half centuries. Only 2 ducks.

ODIS(in 2014) : 20 innings. 1054 runs.58.55 average.99.62 strike rate. 5 Centuries, 4 half centuries. Only 1 duck.

A glorified stroke-maker can often be visible in the deepest of shackles when things don’t unfold the way they should. Although he had a tough time in England, his whopping form recently down under has proved just why he is the best batsman in World Cricket at the moment. After the exit of the Fab Four from the Indian batting line-up, he has taken up the mantle adeptly.

It’s very important for him to score well and big, if India wants to have a shot at defending the World Cup. He is the most dependable batsman in the Indian line up. With brilliant defensive skills, advanced stroke play and timing, if he gets going, then India can set a big target as well as chase the big ones easily. For the past four years, he has managed to score more than a 1000 runs in ODIs in a single calendar year, thus proving his consistency.

2015 will be the year where he has to show his actual worth. The impact that he has on every game shows that a lot depends on him. He needs to make sure he stays at the crease for as long as possible because his presence will affect the opposition a lot. With him on the crease, the game is never over. At a mere age of 26, he has now on his shoulders, the expectations of more than a billion people, which up till now, he has borne very well.

With Dhoni retiring from the longer version of the game, and his appointment as India’s Test skipper, he is the man for Indian cricket in the years to come.

4. Kane Williamson

69,242*-54-31*-97-123-46-70*-10-32-0-192

The above scores are of the recent 10 international appearances of this 24 year old player from New Zealand who managed to score 131 in his debut test against India, was the top run scorer in the West Indies tour of 2014 and the recently concluded Test series against Sri Lanka.

He entered the test cricket with a storm and that too at a mere age of 20. The lowest score he was dismissed at, in the recent Test series against Sri Lanka was 54. Not only his batting, but his fielding also caught a lot of attention. He took some unbelievable catches at some crucial stages, helping his team not only with the batting but also with his splendid stamina and fielding skills, to win the series 2-0.

New Zealand has a very good chance of doing well in the upcoming world cup. Along with Williamson, strong hard hitting batsmen like Corey Anderson, Brendon McCullum, JB Watling are bound to do good. Williamson must continue his good form because his team needs him the most. At a tender age of 24, he has managed to be called amongst the New Zealand’s greatest. Captain McCullum recently said, “I firmly believe Kane could go down as New Zealand’s greatest batsman ever. He’s a phenomenal talent and such a level-headed guy, who just thinks first and foremost about his team and how he can contribute. ”

If Williamson manages to retain his good form and deliver such consistent performances that he did in 2014, coupled with the home advantage, New Zealand might have a good chance of aiming at their first World Cup. Williamson must take the centre stage and carry the expectations to make his country achieve glory.