Ricky Ponting this week passed Brian Lara to become the second highest scorer of Test runs, chasing only the 'Little Master' Sachin Tendulkar who stands a lonely figure atop of the run-scoring charts.

The intricacies of cricket - Test cricket in particular - make it a game fertile for endless discussion and debate. Ponting's latest milestone re-ignited one such never-ending discussion - whether Tendulkar or Ponting should lay claim to the title as the number one batsman presently playing the game.

What is the criteria in judging the better batsman? Different pitches, different bowlers faced and different pressure situations make a Tendulkar-Ponting comparison an impossible task - the game is far more complicated than a set of raw figures.

That said stats must be considered, and were, in the following rather arbitrary head-to-head. (Stats as of July 17 2010). In that same spirit of arbitrariness, we've landed up with seven topics of comparisons.

Factor 1: Average and weight of runs

In the number's stakes it is hard to separate the two. Tendulkar has a slightly higher Test average of 55.56 versus Ponting's 54.83 - big deal. Tendulkar has scored 13 447 Test runs as opposed to the Australian captain's mark of 11 954, Ponting however has played 26 less Test innings. Tendulkar reached the 8000 Test run mark quicker than Ponting, but Ponting reached 11 000 first, and will make 12 000 first too, by just one innings, if he can score 6 runs in the first dig against Pakistan at Leeds next week.

Verdict - Too close to separate.

Factor 2: Record minus the Test minnows

There is talk that playing against the canon-fodder of the Bangladeshi and Zimbabwean attacks provides something of an advantage. That considered Ponting has faced the two Test minnows on only seven occasions while Tendulkar has matched up to the Tigers and Zim 16 times, cashing in for at least a hundred in eight of those matches, including two of his four double-tons.

Verdict - Ricky Ponting. Sachin, to his credit, has made the most of his opportunities, but they do provide a slight artificial enhancement of his Test record.

Factor 3: Facing up to the world's best

During the modern era one team has dominated Test cricket like no other. While we may feel sorry for Punter having had to endure plenty of net time against the likes of McGrath, Lee and Warne, his Test average didn't depend on it. Tendulkar on the other hand has seen off the Australian attack on numerous occasions. In 29 Tests the Little Master has proven himself against the world's best attack with an impressive average of 56.

Verdict - Tendulkar a winner. Ponting may well have struggled early in his innings against an accurate Glenn McGrath.

Factor 4: Recent form

While class is permanent - both these players ooze class - form is temporary. Over the past two years Tendulkar clearly has the better record. His average is 57 compared to Ponting's 41, and he's scored double the amount of hundreds than the Aussie skipper.

Verdict - A wise man once said, "you're only as good as your last innings." Tendulkar scored a hundred in his last Test match against South Africa at Eden Gardens, Ponting hit a duck against Pakistan at Lord's. Enough said.

Factor 5: Scoring hundreds

Tendulkar - 47 Test centuries, Ponting - 39. How to separate the two? - See who reaches three figures more regularly. The Indian talisman scores a hundred once every 5.77 innings, that's phenomenal if you think that he is hitting a hundred on average once every third Test. The Australian number three has a similarly impressive record scoring a hundred every 6.28 innings. Just for interest sake the great Don Bradman scored a hundred every 2.76 Test innings.

Verdict - Bradman by a country-mile, Tendulkar by a whisker.

Factor 6: The weight of captaincy

One of the explanations given for Shahid Afridi's sudden retirement from Test cricket was that Boom Boom couldn't handle the constant pressure of captaincy weighing him down for a full five days. As a player the pressure comes when called on to perform with the bat of the ball. For a captain that pressure is constant, having to call the shots throughout five days.

Tendulkar had a stint as captain of India in 25 Tests between 1996 and 2000, but with a win-percentage of only 16% he relinquished the reigns. His own form also took a slight dip, indicating that the constant pressure of captaincy was hard to bear for the 'Little Master.'

Ponting in contrast has thrived with the captaincy, averaging a touch over 53(more than Tendulkar when he was captain), and leading Australia 70 times with a win rate of 67%. In the process Ponting has skippered more Test victories than any other captain.

Verdict - The man from Tasmania.

Factor 7: The race to the summit

Once the dust has settled and both players have reached the end of their careers, the player who finishes top of the pile will surely hold on to the mantle of highest Test run scorer for some time.

Ponting, with 26 innings in hand, will have to average an above-average 57.42 in those 26 knocks if he is to catch Sachin's present mark.

Age affects the best of us and both players have the end of their careers fast approaching, Ponting at 35 and Tendulkar at 37. Looking at the retirement age of other greats, Lara, Border, Richards, Steve Waugh and Sunil Gavaskar, between the age of 37 and 39 appears the cut-off point for a Test batsman, form allowing.

Worth considering is that the cricketing culture in India, and the cult status of Tendulkar, means that Sachin is likely to be allowed to retire when he sees fit.

In Australia on the other hand Ponting is more likely to be forced out if he overstays his welcome as skipper - just ask Steve Waugh.

Verdict - Tendulkar appears favourite to finish number one. Recent form would suggest so and Tendulkar's head start of playing his first Test at 16 could well be the difference.

Who's the better Test batsman? By the reasoning above, Tendulkar.

Ultimately though it appears that players so closely matched can be best compared once their careers have run their course. It's a subjective matter and you're welcome to go with whoever you wish, I'm going to hold out until both players have called it a day and go with whichever of Ponting or Tendulkar finishes at the summit of the Test run list. Until then, they're only as good as their last innings.