Dewald Brevis: Future Mumbai Indians could look at

Nishad Bapat
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IPL 2022 has been one of the worst seasons for Mumbai Indians but the elegance and class displayed by Dewald Brevis in his stroke-making was one of the positives for them. Dewald Brevis has been consistently scoring runs for MI in the middle order scoring 161 runs from seven matches for the team.

Junior cricket is usually considered to be a foundation for a successful cricket in senior cricket. It paves a way for a young cricketer to be an emerging force in world cricket. The under-19 World Cup is such a vital event and several cricketing superstars have featured in the tournament over the years. The latest edition was held this year in West Indies and it saw a potential star batter in making. 

There has been a rare breed of players who displayed their enormous talent at a very young age and were appreciated for their exploits by the world. Sachin Tendulkar started his career at a young age and showed signs of being a future superstar early in his career. Few more players have emerged from Under-19 cricket and junior levels in the past making a successful international career for them. Dewald Brevis showed his brilliant potential and can turn out to be one of the talented cricketers.

Brevis first got his break as he was signed by Northerns ahead of the 2021-22 domestic season and his journey to becoming a professional cricketer started.  He made his T20 debut in the 2021–22 CSA Provincial T20 Knock-Out tournament. South African team was knocked out of the quarterfinals in the Under-19 World Cup but Dewald Brevis stood out for them and was terrific in run-scoring.  He amassed 506 runs from six matches at 84.33 including two centuries in the tournament. With his amazing technique and stroke-making, Brevis was termed as ‘Baby AB’ in a short period of time. 

Mumbai Indians splashed out Rs 3 Crore for the services of youngsters in the mega auction and it might have been a surprising move for many fans of the game. The South African poster boy showed his outrageous range of shots and elegant stroke-making in the current season right from the start. Brevis got his identity as ‘Baby AB’ due to his striking resemblance with the batting stance and timing of the South African superstar. Brevis was flown straight of all in business class and his journey was converted into a video blog by the franchise. 

Brevis stood up to the task of playing in conditions outside of his comfort zone and was not shy to take on the challenge. Brewis is one of the few batters to make their debut in the shortest format before playing his first-class match. He played his first IPL game against Kolkata Knight Riders and left an impact. He smashed 29 runs from 19 balls including two boundaries and two sixes against a bowling attack that had two quality spinners in form of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy. He displayed his clean timing in the innings and played some effortless strokes. 

The next challenge was against Royal Challengers Bangalore managed to score eight runs. In the next game against Punjab Kings, Brevis showed his capability to the full extent scoring 49 runs from 25 balls hitting four boundaries and five sixes. During the knock, he hit Rahul Chahar for four consecutive sixes and displayed his massive hitting in the game. The team was chasing a target of 199 but Brevis’ knock helped to reach to a total of 186. 

In the next match against Lucknow Super Giants, Brevis was at his attacking best. He tonked the ball all around the park easily scoring 31 runs from 13 balls. His innings included six boundaries and a single six with some quality hitting. The batter then scored low in two innings. Brevis was dropped from the squad and then was included in the team for the last league game. This time around, he once again showed his exemplary talent and amassed 37 runs from 33 balls against Delhi Capitals. IPL 2022 has been a disappointing season for Mumbai Indians but a few things have worked out well for them and there have been a few positives. 

Rohit Sharma and Kieron Pollard have been struggling with the bat but the youngsters in the middle order played well. Suryakumar played good in some matches while Tilak Varma was the find of the tournament for the team. Tilak had been very consistent throughout the tournament and the leading run-scorer for the team. Another player who stood out for the franchise was Dewald Brevis. Brevis has been superb but he has also shown the reason behind him getting the tag of Baby AB. 

As the season ends, the teams will be preparing for the upcoming season. They will be looking at the players who will take the responsibilities in the next season. With the changes in the team, Mumbai Indians will need a solid middle order and Brevis can be at their core. This time also, whenever, the team was in trouble, the South African youngster scored runs with attacking intent. Kieron Pollard doesn’t have age on his side and so it will be necessary for the team to look towards youngsters. 

Varma can bat at number 4 and Brevis can be at five as he has a flair to play with an attacking style.

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