Best ODI Chasers and Finishers

David Warner flying to a TEST ton : is the modern game

Shiv also had a ton in 67 balls 

Power Plays is the Modern game.

The Game has changed , we all accept that.

Why this addiction to compare previous eras ?

Bevan could not buy a run in a game today

Murali would be retrieving Balls from the stand !

But we're comparing Gayle to contemporaries.

And look at all the great current ODI batsmen: Sanga, Kohli, Root, Kane, Amla, Smith....which of these is a "modern", "cowlasher"?

Aside from ABDV, they're all old school. They're very traditional.

It's the explosive guys like Mccullum, Sehwag and Gayle that average in the 30s. They slog, the opposition takes out the slips, and they live a charmed life - no catches in the back - until they're out. Or they post a fast ton.

You can compare to previous eras, but you have to factor in the way stats change.

Tendular averaging 40+ in the 90s is awesome when everyone else is averaging in the 20s and 30s.

Kohli averaging in the 50s in the 00s is not inherently "more awesome" than Tendulkar, when Kohli's opponents are likewise also averaging a full ten runs more.

Guys like Anwar, Inzi and Jayasuriya were the Gayles of the 90s. They averaged about 32-39 in ODIs, which was high for that era. For Gayle to be batting the same way and be averaging the same or less in the 00s, when the averages of his opponents have gone up by about ten runs, is poor.

David Warner and Kevin Pietersen are two more examples of ultra aggressive batsmen with rather disappointing numbers when chasing. Warner averages 35 in 26 innings with 1 century and 6 fifties, while KP averaged 38.22 with 4 centuries and 10 fifties in 64 innings. Both had strike-rates in excess of 87.

Less 

No, it's "more".

I think Warner will average very highly by the time he retires. I just realized he and Gayle are the only openers in the world across all 3 formats.

It's also interesting that Warner already has more test tons than Gayle, and already averages 50. I don't think Gayle ever hit 50.

Guptil and Hales are the only other two I can think of offhand that currently open across all three formats.

Gayle posted his highest career average of 42.77 after his 150 in the first innings of the 25 July 2012 Test against New Zealand.