Steve Smith has an edge over Virat Kohli in Tests: Australia limited-overs captain Aaron Finch

In a recent interview, Australia limited-overs captain Aaron Finch was asked to pick who is the better batsman among the two across all formats.

Virat Kohli and Steve Smith have had a see-saw battle for the top position in Test cricket over the past few years. While Smith was named as ICC Test Player of the Year of 2017, Kohli went on to earn the plaudit for the year 2018. The two have also continued to battle it out among themselves in ICC Test Rankings, as they keep on going one over each other to earn the no. 1 spot. Last month, Smith went past Kohli to reclaim the top position in ICC Test Batting Rankings, while Kohli slipped to the second spot.

File image of Steve Smith and Virat Kohli. (Reuters)

In a recent interview, Australia limited-overs captain Aaron Finch was asked to pick who is the better batsman among the two across all formats. While Finch said that Kohli is better in ODIs and T20Is, he also added that Smith holds the edge in the longest format over Kohli.

“I think in Test cricket, Virat and Smith’s record at home and in away games is unbelievable. Virat had a tough series a few years ago in England against James Anderson. But then he came back to England in 2018 and dominated the series,” Finch was quoted as saying in an interview to Sports Tak.

“Smith has never really struggled anywhere, to be fair. He is an unbelievable Test player. The most impressive thing about both of them which probably separates and puts them above anyone else is that how dominant they are all over the world,” he added.

“It’s one thing to dominate in your country, at wickets you are comfortable in. To do it all around the world is extraordinary. Sometimes they get out early, but that’s just cricket. But they very rarely miss out, and when they go, they go big,” he further added.

“I think Smith just has an edge in Test cricket. Virat’s probably has played on wickets that has deteriorated a lot quicker when the ball started spinning big, and going a little bit lower a bit more often,” he further explained.

“Smith in Test cricket is unbelievable, I think his game plan is so well, he’s so good at,” the Australia batsman added.

Smith has played 73 Tests so far in which he has scored 7,227 runs at an average of 62.84. He has scored 26 hundreds so far. Meanwhile, Kohli has played 86 Tests in which he has scored 7,240 runs at an average of 53.62. He has scored 27 Test tons so far.