'Kane Williamson and Joe Root probably play in the toughest of conditions' - Gautam Gambhir on Fab 4

The discussion on the modern-day Fab Four is something that has gone on for a long time. Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Kane Williamson and Steve Smith are four of the leading batsmen in world cricket right now, and they often tend to be compared to each other.

Joe Root was the batsman who had averaged the least among the illustrious quartet. But then, the England batsman has provided resounding answers to all those who doubted his abilities by scoring three consecutive centuries in his first 3 Tests of 2021.

He is now the only batsman among the Fab Four to have scored over 8000 (8467) Test runs, and after his exploits in the first 2 months of 2021, his average has once again gone past the 50-run mark. And once again, this has ignited the debate about the prowess of the four greatest batsmen of the modern era.

Gautam Gambhir opines about the Fab Four

Now, former Indian cricketer, Gautam Gambhir has his take on the comparison between the 4 legendary batsmen. Gambhir was of the opinion that both Root and Williamson play in possibly the toughest condition in Tests. He also said that England and New Zealand are not easy places to score runs. He further added that pitches in Australia, as well as in the sub-continent, tend to become flat.

“You have to realize one thing that someone like Kane Williamson and Joe Root probably play in the toughest of conditions. England is not the easy place to play, with the Duke ball and in English conditions. And, New Zealand equally is not that easy to play when the ball is swinging and seaming. You look at sub-continent conditions, you look at Australian conditions, they tend to go flat. But England never goes flat,” opined Gambhir in a chat with Cricinfo.

Gambhir further added that Root and Williamson should not be compared to the other two batsmen of the Fab Four only because of the conditions. The former Indian opener also stressed upon Root’s stunning numbers in sub-continental conditions and termed them as unbelievable. Gambhir also stated that the ball starts spinning right from the first day in the sub-continent. He concluded by saying that the cricketing world should not forget Root’s exploits in Sri Lanka in January 2021, where he scored 426 runs in just 2 Test matches.

“You cannot compare Virat Kohli and Steve Smith to Joe Root or Kane Williamson because of the conditions. But then, look what he (Root) has done in the sub-continent. Imagine if Virat Kohli would have gone to England and New Zealand and got these kind of runs. It is unbelievable, especially on these turning tracks. He has 600 runs in three Test matches, that too in the subcontinent, where the ball starts spinning from day one. We should not forget what he has done in Sri Lanka,” concluded Gambhir.