IPL 2020 | Kohli produced a masterclass; Morris is a special talent, asserts AB de Villiers

10/12/2020

RCB wicket-keeper batsman AB de Villiers has applauded skipper Virat Kohli for his 90-run masterclass against CSK and also termed Chris Morris as a special talent. He also reckons that Morris is one of the most effective bowlers in the shortest format and brings a lot of balance to the side.

When RCB skipper Virat Kohli stated that their present squad had a balance as good as the 2016 IPL where they managed to reach the finals, not everyone believed him, but his team has proved its detractors wrong thus far as RCB have won four games losing three after seven games and are placed at fourth position in the IPL points table. Chris Morris, who finally made his debut for RCB against CSK, after missing out earlier games, due to injury, put up a great show taking three wickets for 19 runs and nailing yorkers at death for the Reds.

His countryman and teammate, AB de Villiers is quite enamoured by Morris' display and he termed him an excellent all-round package. AB also stated that he realized Morris' value when he was the skipper of South African team across formats and feels the all-rounder adds a lot of balance and depth to Bangalore's side.

"Chris Morris is one of the most effective cricketers in T20 cricket. A fast bowler who restricts batsmen at the start and end of the innings, a hard-hitting batsman who scores quickly in the middle-order and an excellent fielder, he’s the kind of player who has the ability, with ball and bat, to change the course of the game," AB de Villiers wrote in his column for Hindustan Times.

"I recognized his value in the years when I captained South Africa and it was surprising when Chris was initially omitted from the Proteas squad for the 2019 Cricket World Cup in England. It was, however, not at all surprising when, having been called into the team as an injury replacement, he emerged as SA’s leading wicket-taker in the tournament. Chris has the ability to bring balance to our team for the remainder of the tournament—not only bowling in the power play and at the death but also scoring quick runs when required," he added.

The former South African skipper and RCB no.4 also lauded Virat Kohli for his masterclass against CSK where he made an unbeaten 90 and helped the side post a great total, which ultimately proved too much for the Chennai Super Kings as RCB returned back to winning ways after losing out against DC.

"Virat produced a masterclass, pacing himself perfectly under pressure, and it was great to see Shivam Dube perform so well alongside our captain."