Warne adds Smith to his 'top 10 batsmen'

Shane Warne has thrown his two cents into the 'best since Bradman' debate currently raging in light of Steve Smith's astonishing run of form.

Warne, who played 145 Tests between 1992 and 2007, has listed his top 11 batsmen from those he has either seen or played with or against.

On the list, Smith slots in at equal 10th with India captain Virat Kohli, though in his column Warne did say he felt the Australian had his contemporary counterpart for Test cricket's batting crown covered.

"I don't assess greatness by stats, but rather by the way someone played the game, the way they influenced results and the impact they had on all of us," he wrote in his News Corp column.

"That's how we remember our heroes.

"To me a great batsman has to have made a hundred in three key countries: in England, against the Duke ball on seaming and swinging pitches; in Australia, on our fast-paced, bouncy tracks; and of course, in the dust bowls of India, on pitches that spin and spit."

Kohli's dismal tour of England in 2014 was the factor Warne used to separate he and Smith, who has made three away Ashes hundreds and averages 43.31 in the UK.

"To me Steve Smith is the best Test batsman in the world," he wrote. "Virat Kohli is the best across all three formats of the game, but across five days, Steve Smith is the man.

"The hole in Kohli’s CV on the Test match stage is in England and the pressure is on the fiery but very likeable Indian to carry over some double-ton magic from home soil to that country when his team tours next year."

Warne listed West Indian legends Viv Richards and Brian Lara as first and second respectively, with Indian champion Sachin Tendulkar third.

Next on his list came three Australians in Greg Chappell, Ricky Ponting and Allan Border.

South Africans Jacques Kallis and AB de Villiers were at seven and nine respectively, with lone Englishman Graham Gooch between that pair at number eight.

Smith and Kohli rounded out the top 11, with Warne offering a final word on the world's No.1-ranked Test batsman.

"Look at him on pure numbers and since Bradman, he's the best," he added. "If Smith keeps this form up over 100 Test matches, he will leave the game as an absolute legend and one of the all-time greats.

"You'd have to think there will be a dip in performance at some stage, but considering his average since he notched his first century, at the Oval in August 2013 – it's a touch under 72 – maybe not."

2017-18 International Fixtures

Magellan Ashes Series

Australia Test squad: Steve Smith (c), David Warner (vc), Cameron Bancroft, Usman Khawaja, Peter Handscomb, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine (wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Jackson Bird.

England Test squad: Joe Root (c), James Anderson (vc), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Gary Ballance, Stuart Broad, Alastair Cook, Mason Crane, Tom Curran, Ben Foakes, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Ben Stokes, Mark Stoneman, James Vince, Chris Woakes.

First Test Australia won by 10 wickets. Scorecard

Second Test Australia won by 120 runs (Day-Night). Scorecard

Third Test Australia won by an innings and 41 runs. Scorecard

Fourth Test MCG, December 26-30. Tickets

Fifth Test SCG, January 4-8 (Pink Test). Tickets

Gillette ODI Series v England

First ODI MCG, January 14. Tickets

Second ODI Gabba, January 19. Tickets

Third ODI SCG, January 21. Tickets

Fourth ODI Adelaide Oval, January 26. Tickets

Fifth ODI Perth Stadium, January 28. Tickets

Prime Minister's XI

PM's XI v England Manuka Oval, February 2. Tickets

Gillette T20 trans-Tasman Tri-Series

First T20I Australia v NZ, SCG, February 3. Tickets

Second T20I – Australia v England, Blundstone Arena, February 7. Tickets

Third T20I – Australia v England, MCG, February 10. Tickets

Fourth T20I – NZ v England, Wellington, February 14

Fifth T20I – NZ v Australia, Eden Park, February 16

Sixth T20I – NZ v England, Seddon Park, February 18

Final – TBC, Eden Park, February 21