Opening the batting might be the hardest job in cricket but the game is rich with men who have mastered the art of facing the new ball.
English pair Jack Hobbs and Len Hutton would be among the first names on the list of the all-time greatest openers.
Countrymen Herbert Sutcliffe and Geoffrey Boycott have to rate highly, and forgetting to mention W.G.Grace would be akin to heresy.
Indian Sunil Gavaskar has a cast-iron case for inclusion and South African Barry Richards had a promising career stymied while the republic was banned from international sport.
The West Indies have had their share of talented openers, with Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes at the top of the list.
More recently, Indian Virender Sehwag and South African duo Herschelle Gibbs and Graeme Smith have set the pace.
And then, of course, there is Matthew Hayden.
The acclaimed left-hander retired last week after missing selection for the Australian one-day side, drawing the curtain on a long and illustrious career.
The 37-year-old had planned to retire after the Ashes tour of England but decided the time was right and joins the likes of Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Adam Gilchrist in a string of retirements which has taken its toll on the champion Australian side.
Hayden's raw statistics show he played 103 tests and scored 8625 runs at an average of 50.74, including 30 centuries and 29 half centuries.
It is a wonderful achievement and one that cements his place among the greatest openers in history.
A tall and imposing figure, Hayden exuded confidence at the crease and his belief in his ability was perhaps his greatest attribute.
Success was not immediate, though.
He netted just 536 runs in his first 22 innings at an average of 24.36 and had trouble establishing himself in the side.
He made his mark on international cricket during the tour of India in 2000-01, when he scored 549 runs at an average of 109.80.
Of the world's leading openers who have scored more than 5000 runs, Hayden enjoys the fourth-best average behind Hutton (56.48), Hobbs (56.37) and Sehwag (52.38).
In 2003, he whacked 380 against Zimbabwe and briefly held the record for the highest individual test score, and his tally of 30 centuries has been bettered by only five batsmen - Gavaskar, Brian Lara, Ricky Ponting, Sachin Tendulkar and Steve Waugh.
Hayden's combination with Justin Langer was one of the most prolific opening partnerships in test history.
The pair scored 5655 runs at an average of 51.88 in 113 innings together, including 14 century partnerships and 24 half-century stands.
Only Greenidge and Haynes (6482 at 47.31) have scored more runs.
Hobbs and Sutcliffe were perhaps the most successful opening pairing, though.
In just 38 innings together they scored 3249 runs at a remarkable average of 87.81.
The platform Hayden and Langer set at the top of the order for Australia cannot be underestimated in the success of other players like Ponting.
Coming in one down for 50, 60 or even 100-odd is a much different proposition than early in the first session when the bowlers are fresh, have a new ball and there is moisture in the pitch to work with.
It is that sort of contribution which cannot be as easily counted as all the centuries or match-winning innings Hayden played.
