IPL 2020 | AB de Villiers is the most innovative batsman that I have seen, opines Ali BacherÂ
ABDv after win over RR
|@ IPL T20
Former South African captain Ali Bacher has been mighty impressed with the exploits of RCB batsman AB de Villiers, whom he termed the most innovative batsman that he has seen in cricket. He also put him in the same league as Graeme Pollock and Barry Richards, after the way AB has batted this IPL.Â
When it comes to impact on the game, not many batsmen compare to South African and RCB legend AB de Villiers. He has this ability of turning the course of the game in a few overs and the fact that he does it consistently is what makes him a modern-day master of the game. He has been ins scintillating touch this season of IPL. His fifties against Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Rajasthan Royals have awed one and all, and there no signs of him slowing down despite having retired a couple of years back from international cricket, which is remarkable.Â
Ali Bacher, who is renowned as the Proteas captain to have defeated Australia 4-0 in 1969-70, before South Africa's apartheid policies drove them out of the game for a considerable time, asserted that AB de Villiers is in the same league as Graeme Pollock and Barry Richards, who are considered two of the biggest batting legends from South Africa.Â
"I see that 'AB' continues to display his genius at the IPL. I used to say that Graeme Pollock and Barry Richards are the two best batsmen that South Africa has produced. I put 'AB' in that league. He is the most innovative batsman that I have seen," Bacher told TOI.
A while back, RCB skipper Virat Kohli had called him "the most impactful player of the IPL." while Ravi Shastri had also urged him to resume playing international cricket after he struck a mind-blowing fifty against KKR in Sharjah to lead RCB to an emphatic win. With a strike-rate of 190, AB de Villiers has the second-best strike-rate this season. He is averaging 57 with the bat and has four fifties in nine innings. The right-hander has been one of the major forces behind RCB's rise in IPL 2020, as they sit at the second position in the points table with 14 points right now.Â
