Quote:Does batting in limited overs cricket require a totally different mindset from batting in Tests? Are some batsmen better equipped to handle the Twenty20 (T20) game while others appear to be more at home in cricket's other formats? And what are the qualities that facilitate success in one format but not necessarily in the other?
"See the ball, hit the ball" is a phrase often used to explain the very gist of batting. It is batting in its simplest, most natural form. It is batting reduced to first principles. In limited overs cricket, especially T20 cricket, it is the batsman more capable of hitting the ball more cleanly and more often that will be more successful. In other words, the more naturally talented batsmen -- those bequeathed with better eyesight, better co-ordination, better judgement of line and length, quicker feet perhaps, that are more likely to excel.
What I think the article is trying to say is that good batsmen need to posses certain qualities like good eyesight, hand/eye coordination, judgment etc. The good test player will develop other qualities besides like patience and good decision-making skills such as when to play and when not to. Players like Gayle undoubtedly has great natural talent but probably didn't develop the qualities that make for a great test batsman like Ponting, Lara etc.
Rather interestingly, Kohli, Root and Williamson (the three best batsman across all three formats for the game according to Sangakkara) all have similar boundary percentages this World Cup. 52% of Kohli's runs have been scored through boundaries, 55% for Williamson and 58% for Root. All three look to play conventional shots, are content to rotate the strike with ones and twos, but will punish bad balls for boundaries.
A few other notable boundary percentages this World Cup: Gayle 86%, Shazhad 78%, Guptill 77%, deKock 70%, Khawaja 70%, de Villiers 67%, Fletcher 64%, Amla 63%, Dilshan 62% and Buttler 61%.
[quote author=zacaroni link=topic=103455.msg686932#msg686932 date=1459212246]
Gayle undoubtedly has great natural talent but probably didn't develop the qualities that make
for a great test batsman like Ponting, Lara etc.
[/quote]
Which of your named three has a Test triple Century ....... Twice ?
I think the greats need to be consistent over long periods. I don't think Gayle has been that consistent. He is a good player but I wouldn't put him in the class of Ponting or Lara