NEW DELHI: Former Australian great Ricky Ponting expressed his admiration for Jacques Kallis, a former South African all-rounder. During a conversation on Sky Sports Cricket on Saturday, Ponting declared Kallis as the “most talented player” he has ever witnessed.
Ponting’s high praise for Kallis stems from South African’s exceptional all-round abilities and impressive statistics throughout his career.Despite his remarkable achievements, Ponting believes that Kallis is “one of the most underrated players ever” in the world of cricket.
“I will say Jacques Kallis is the most talented player that I have ever seen because of his all-round game. I’m not just talking about a talented batsman; I am talking about a talented cricketer. Jacques Kallis made 44, 45 Test hundreds, probably 300 wickets, maybe more than that, and he would have an unbelievable catching record as well in Test cricket,” said Ponting.
The Australian legend noted that not many players consider him an all-time great.
“I think he is one of the most underrated players ever that is played the game. I mean, I know he is rated; obviously, he should be, but not many people talk about him as being one of the all-time greats, and in my eyes, he certainly is,” Ponting added.
Kallis, in his illustrious career from 1995 to 2013, played 166 Test matches, amassing 13,289 runs at an impressive average of 55.37, with 45 centuries and 58 fifties across 280 innings. His highest score of 224 solidified his place as South Africa’s highest Test run-scorer, ranking third globally behind Ricky Ponting of Australia (13,378 runs in 168 Tests) and India’s Sachin Tendulkar (15,921 runs in 200 Tests).
Kallis was also a valuable bowler, taking 292 wickets at an average of 32.65, with best figures of 6/54. He claimed five five-wicket hauls in Tests, making him South Africa’s seventh-highest wicket-taker, with Dale Steyn leading at 439 wickets in 93 Tests.
In One-Day Internationals (ODIs), from 1996 to 2014, Kallis scored 11,579 runs in 328 matches at an average of 44.36, with 17 centuries and 86 fifties, and a top score of 139. He was South Africa’s leading run-scorer in ODIs, ranking eighth globally, with Tendulkar leading with 18,426 runs in 463 matches.
With the ball, Kallis took 273 wickets in ODIs at an average of 31.79, including five-wicket hauls, with his best figures being 5/30. He stands as South Africa’s second-highest wicket-taker in ODIs, behind Shaun Pollock (387 wickets in 294 matches).
In 25 T20 Internationals, Kallis scored 666 runs at an average of 35.05 and a strike rate of 119.35, with five half-centuries. He also took 12 wickets, with best bowling figures of 4/15.
Overall, Kallis scored 25,534 runs in 519 international matches, with 62 centuries and 149 fifties, making him the sixth-highest run-scorer in international cricket. His 577 wickets across all formats also place him among South Africa’s top bowlers. Sachin Tendulkar remains the top run-getter with 34,357 runs in 664 matches.
