‘Taylor can surpass Fleming’

Mumbai: Former New Zealand captain and legendary batsman Glenn Turner reckons Ross Taylor has the capability to surpass Stephen Fleming and go down as the best batsman from the country since Martin Crowe. However, Turner reckons the world is yet to see the best of the talented right-hander.

Taylor, New Zealand’s stand-in captain in the ongoing Micromax Cup tri-series, scored a match-winning 95 against India on Tuesday. “He is a special talent. We haven’t seen the best of him yet. He is still sorting out his decision-making at the crease. It gives him more scope to better his game,” Turner told Cricketnirvana.

New Zealand’s most successful skipper ever, Fleming, scored 7172 runs from 111 Tests. The retired southpaw is also the leading run-getter in ODIs with 8007 runs from 279 games. “I would expect Taylor to surpass Fleming. He is a potential great, with the flair and skill he brings to the table,” Turner said.

Turner, who was a pioneer of the one-day game with 1598 runs from just 41 games, reckons Taylor holds the key to New Zealand’s fortunes at next year’s World Cup in the subcontinent. “If he is in good form, he should make a major contribution.

But definitely New Zealand will rely a lot on him. He plays the spinners really well. We haven’t seen the best of him in that regard too.

“The two positive aspects of his batting are, a) he likes to use his feet, and b) he invariably meets the ball with the face of the bat. His basics are in place. He has a lot of time at the crease, and that is very important when you play in the subcontinent,” Turner said, showering praises on Taylor.

The 26-year old is one of T20 cricket’s most successful batsman ever with 2395 runs from 92 games. He was instrumental in Royal Challengers Bangalore reaching the final of the 2009 IPL.

“I still feel he hasn’t mastered the T20 format yet. If he introduces more innovations to his batting, he can be even more lethal. In time he will sort that out. He is way too talented not to iron out any flaws,” he said.

When asked if Taylor was as talented as himself, Turner, who scored an unbeaten 171 against East Africa in the 1975 World Cup, said “absolutely, he is. A super talent. One of the best in the world”.