It will be a red-letter day for Dan Biggar when he captains Wales against Six Nations opponents Italy in Cardiff on Saturday.
Biggar wins his 100th cap, highlighting what an influential performer he has been during a 14-year Test career, and while his opposite number this weekend – Azzurri number 10 Paolo Garbisi – is at the other end of the experience scale, he runs the show for a team desperately requiring such all-round quality.
Here, we look at their head-to-head contest in a game that will see Wales start as odds-on favourites.
Dan Biggar – Northampton
Dan Biggar, centre, in action against France
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Position: Fly-half
Age: 32
Caps: 99
Debut: versus Canada, 2008
Height: 6′ 2″
Weight: 14st 1lb
Points: 560 (7 tries)
Biggar will become the seventh Welshman – he joins Alun Wyn Jones, Gethin Jenkins, Stephen Jones, George North, Martyn Williams and Gareth Thomas – to gain membership of Wales’ 100-cap club when he leads his country against Italy.
The Northampton fly-half has relished his role as Wales’ Six Nations skipper, leading from the front and playing a starring role in their narrow victory over Scotland.
The emphasis now will be to finish off in style against an Italian side without a Six Nations win since 2015, and expect a dominant display by Biggar, whose form and consistency remains top-drawer.
Paolo Garbisi – Montpellier
Position: Fly-half
Age: 21
Caps: 17
Debut: versus Ireland, 2020
Height: 6′ 0″
Weight: 14st 9lbs
Points: 97 (1 try)
Garbisi is one of the shining lights in Italian rugby, a player whose form for club and country has merited considerable praise.
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He has thrived in the demanding French Top 14 league with Montpellier, performing consistently well enough to keep South African World Cup winner Handre Pollard out of the team, and he has excelled in an Italy side grateful for his tactical acumen and admirable creativity.
The Azzurri have lost 36 successive Six Nations Tests, but the growing impact of their Under-20 team – which claimed victories over England and Scotland in recent weeks – and Garbisi’s established presence provides reasons for optimism.
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