Who do you think has the best Test average of those that have played at least three matches since New Years Day 2008?
Perhaps surprisingly, it is not Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis, Hashim Amla or even Jonathan Trott. No, the man who heads the table is that most underrated of cricketers - Thilan Samaraweera.
Samaraweera has scored 2,561 runs in 28 Tests during this period with seven hundreds and an average of 69.21 - only Younis Khan and AB De Villiers average over 60 during the same time.
But this excellent record didn't prevent Samaraweera from being dropped by Sri Lanka after the home series defeat by Australia in August.
Duleep Mendis, Sri Lanka's chairman of selectors, has stated that Samaraweera, who is 35, would not figure in the long-term plans of the selectors who intended to give more opportunities to youngsters.
That is all very laudable, but Sri Lanka can ill-afford to leave someone of Samaraweera's quality, experience and recent record out of the side at the moment. Indeed, there is a sense that they are a side in freefall with no bowler to speak of (Lasith Malinga apart, and he doesn't play Test cricket).
Samaraweera has been belatedly called up to the squad for the daunting looking trip to South Africa, where to be frank one fears for Sri Lanka's ability to make the Test series competitive.
It was ridiculously harsh to drop him and we have no doubt that Sri Lanka will need him over the next few weeks as they rely on Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Samaraweera to keep the effervescent Dale Steyn from running through their batting.
Where next?
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