Atlas 14, the Sacred Band were only 300 Theban riders who were, in effect, the elite at that time. They had vowed to die altogether and the fact that they were all gays (150 couples) made them all the more deadlier because they were fighting right beside their loved one. Interestingly enough If I recall correctly I think only 50 or so survived. In recent diggings they found out that exact number of bodies where the Sacred Band had fallen.
They were hacked down immediately in their starting battle position, they didn't even move during the battle. They were killed on the spot.
300 guys on horseback, no matter how elite, were no match for King Phillip AND Alexander commanding the cavalry, which could be counted in thousands in that battle against a measly 300 guys, and the Army together. Just peanuts.
As for Porus I think scaring the elephants helped quite a bit, blowing the trumpets.
I agree with BOTP, Memnon was the best "Persian" (=greek) general he fought, marrying his wife for whom he had always had a crush and bearing a child IIRC.
Strong generalship ? You mean when Darius fled both times when he saw Alexander and The Comrades heading straight for him ? He was no general, no man with pride whatsoever.
As for King Phillip you underestimate him. Alexander was extreamly envious of his father. He didn't want his father to take all the glory for all his conquests. King Phillip created the most powerful and professional army( the first professional army in History of Mankind Atlas14) following what he had learned as a royal hostage in Thebes from a man no less than Epaminondas himself, learning the secrets of the Phallanx to which he added depth, a total of 16 lines instead of 8, it varied depending on the battle. He united all Greece and was planning to invade Persia (that was one of the main purposes of uniting the Greeks) when he was murdered by....who was really behind the murderer ? Why did Alexander execute him asap ? Far too many questions....specially when King Phillip was going to marry with a true macedonian blue blood (unlike Alexander who was a "bastard" for not being 100% Macedonian) and bear a "true" heir to the throne. Olympia wouldn't allow this and neither would Alexander.
So it is little surprising they crushed the Sacred Band years after, Phillip knew every single trick from the Theban book having been taught by Epanimondas himself, Supreme Commander of the Theban Army and an excellent general at that who helped defeat the until then invincible Spartans (bred since the age of seven years in barracks, bred to fight and die) which had ruled uncontested untill then all of Greece.
The education The Comrades received was elite even by today's standards. Aristotles, only one of many professors and generals which taught them, was rewarded by his teachings by King Phillip reconstructing his ENTIRE native city which had been completely razed in a past war. This IMHO has been the highest price someone has paid for the education of his son.
Now Alexander was brilliant, no doubt, a military genius. But please, don't forget he was taught from childhood to fight -and win-. He inherited the most powerful Army on Earth at the time, not by sheer numbers but by tactics, by combat experience, composed of very hard veterans from ALL of Phillip's campaigns spanning many many years.
Plus remember he was following a book, more or less, The Chronicles of the ten thousand by Jenofonte written only 20 or 30 years earlier which proved to give an invaluable first-hand greek insight deep into Persia, highlighting all its potential weaknesses.
He had all the supplies he wanted being, after all, THE king.
Compare all this to Hannibal and draw your own conclusion. Who was, indeed, a better general. I have no doubt in my mind Alexander was only second to him.
