I found this table intriguing. Not only does it back up the view of fellow Cricket Burbler Dave on Daniel Vettori being a mainstay of the New Zealand batting line up, but it also gives an interesting perspective on the upcoming Sri Lanka v England series. England, under Duncan Fletcher, placed great emphasis on trying to make sure that all members of the team could make a contribution with the bat, and it seems results show that effort was worth it, with the batting average of the 4th-11th best batsmen being second only to Australia's.
Conversely though, England's top 3 aren't that far ahead - coming second bottom of the table with only New Zealand below them. Contrast that with Sri Lanka who's top 3 are top of the table. So the key for England is to target Sangakkara and Jayawardene in particular. And they need a batsman (or preferably more than one) to dominate in the way that was last seen when Michael Vaughan dominated against Australia in a losing effort in 2002/03. Pietersen had some joy against Sri Lanka when they toured England in 2006, memorably reverse sweeping Murali for six - England will be hoping for him to dominate again.
You can read the whole article at Cricinfo here, which elsewhere talks about Pakistan's top 3, who aren't included in the table above.
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