In a recent discussion, former England captain Michael Vaughan picked Joe Root as the best Test batsman while former Australia wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist named Virat Kohli as the best.

Adam Glichrist picks Virat Kohli as ‘Best Test Batsman’

Both Vaughan and Glichrist agreed that Kohli is excellent in limited-overs cricket, but Vaughan backed Root due to his recent good performances in Test cricket. Gilchrist responded by noting that Root has yet to score a century in a Test in Australia.

Adam also recalled Kohli’s 123 against Australia in Perth in 2018 and hailed it as one of the best innings he has ever seen.

“In the short term. Over the long term, Joe Root’s stats are… well, he’s the best England’s ever had,” Gichrist said on the Club Prairie Fire podcast.

“Virat scored one of the best tons I’ve seen at Perth Stadium in the first Test match ever played there, that was probably a different sauce. I’d probably say Virat,” he added.

“I wouldn’t argue with that in Australia. I would say Virat in Australia against the Aussies, anywhere else I go Joe Root,” Vaughan replied.

Who would you prefer: Joe Root 🏴 …

The guys are debating who they would pick in each format 🏏 in different countries 🇦🇺 and you might be surprised 😮

Link 🔗 to watch the entire episode 📺 now – https://t.co/wAgUAj0XsT#PrairieClubFire photo: twitter.com/MH5aMD0dVJ

— Prairie Fire Club (@clubprairiefire) September 4, 2024

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Virat Kohli vs Joe Root

Root is currently in perhaps the most productive phase of his career. Last month, he achieved the rare feat of scoring a century in each innings of the second Test against Sri Lanka at Lord’s. His 33rd and 34th centuries moved him past Alastair Cook, who was above him in the ranking of England’s most Test centuries.

In comparison, Kohli’s last century came against the West Indies in July 2023 and he has only had one score above 50 in his last four innings. Overall, he has scored 8848 runs in 113 Tests, with 29 centuries. Root has amassed 12377 runs in 145 Tests, at a healthy average of 50.93.

Dinesh Karthik gives his opinion on Kohli vs Root debate

On Thursday, former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik weighed in on the Root vs Kohli debate on Cricbuzz’s YouTube show ‘HeyCB with DK’. Initially, Karthik’s preference for Root, purely as a statistical performer, almost won over RCB star Vaughan. However, Karthik pulled off a major twist in his response.

“The numbers will tell you it’s Joe Root, but my heart, the fact that I’ve seen him play in close quarters for a long time, over a decade… I know how much he loves playing in those big moments and big series. And if someone asks him a question, he’ll be so strong on you that you’ll think, ‘Wow, why did I even ask that question’. If I was asked who would play for my life, it would be Kohli. Without a doubt,” he said.

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Answering a question from a fan about Root and Kohli, Karthik said that while the stats are in favour of the former England captain, his close observation of Kohli throughout his career has led him to a different conclusion. According to him, the stats may say so, but if he had to choose a cricketer to play for his life, he would choose the former India captain.