AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla: A statistical comparison
When you think about the South African team now, three names stick out – Dale Steyn, AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla. Take Steyn out and you are confronted with two of the best batsmen in cricket at present. It is a very steep and broad opinion to make, with the presence of world-class batsmen like Steven Smith, Younis Khan, Joe Root, or Angelo Mathews, but Amla and de Villiers stand out a mile mainly due to their batting style, consistency and personality.
They both started their international career in 2004 and have grown tremendously in their cricketing career. De Villiers was known as the youngster who just wanted to hit every bowl that was bowled to him, played too many premeditated shots only to gave his wicket away too soon. However, South Africa has seen De Villiers mature through the years into a fine, enduring and destructible batsman.
De Villiers made his Test match debut as an opener against England at Port Elizabeth, partnering his then skipper Graeme Smith but has since moved down the order & cemented his spot in the middle order. He has excelled in every endeavour in cricket, whether it is with the bat in hand, behind the stumps, on the field and even as a part-time bowler.
Hashim Amla, on the other hand, has a completely different batting strategy to De Villiers. His humble demeanour was established when he made his debut against India in Kolkata in the year 2004 and though he had a less than spectacular start to his International career, but found his way to the top rapidly and soon became one of the most respected and brilliant batsman in this era.
Here is how these two South African batsmen compare in the various forms of the game:
Test Cricket: In close parameters
Although the number one slot for the ICC Test batsmen is currently occupied by Australian skipper Steven Smith, De Villiers and Amla has been constantly battling for the top spot with their brilliant performances. These two have never been out of the top five of the batsmen rankings since 2010 and both their ratings are over 880.
This has played a crucial role in elevating their team into the number one Test team in the world since 2012 and the Proteas have not looked back since. However, these two players are so close statistically despite their various batting techniques and this will explain why they are the best in the world.
| Player | Where | Matches | Runs | Average | High Score | 100s |
| AB de Villiers | Home | 54 | 3887 | 47.98 | 163 | 12 |
| Away | 40 | 3138 | 52.30 | 217* | 7 | |
| Hashim Amla | Home | 45 | 3361 | 48.71 | 208 | 11 |
| Away | 36 | 3017 | 54.85 | 311* | 10 |
De Villiers has played 14 more Test matches than Amla and has scored 836 runs more. Their batting averages show how good these batsmen are, with Amla slightly ahead with a better average and has also scored more centuries than De Villiers.
However, there is one stat which seems to differentiate the two – Amla has the ability to score big while de Villiers fails to capitalise and score a massive innings. De Villiers has made 80 or more runs on 30 occasions making 3972 runs, but Amla has made 80 or more on 24 occasions making 3650 runs, giving Amla a six-match less run defeat. If you compare the duo by most double centuries scored, Amla wins with 3 to De Villiers 2. Amla also has the highest individual score (311*) by a South African batsmen in Test cricket.
| Player | Matches | Runs | Average | High Score | 100s |
| AB de Villiers | 98 | 7606 | 52.09 | 278* | 21 |
| Hashim Amla | 84 | 6770 | 52.48 | 311* | 23 |
ODI: The battle for number one
If you thought the similarity in statistics of these two players were just limited to the longer format, think again as these two are again neck-and-neck in One-Day cricket as well. They occupy the first and second position in the ICC ODI batsmen rankings with de Villiers on 844 and Amla on 811 points.
De Villiers made his debut in 2005 against England while Amla had to wait till 2008 for his first ODI match against Bangladesh. As a result, the two have a match difference of 69 games, which is why the overall statistics shouldn’t be compared, but rather in the years they have played in the same team.
They have played 109 games together since 2008 & Amla emerges ‘weaker’, although he is anything but, with De Villiers sitting on 5311 runs with an average of 65.56, while Amla is on 5505 runs at an average of 56.75.
Amla has scored 20 centuries, whereas de Villiers has 16 centuries when they have been in the same team. Their batting positions are varied, as Amla opens while de Villiers comes in the middle order. They have been at the crease in 36 innings and have made 2726 runs together at an average of 80.17, the highest ODI partnership average in cricket thus far.
De Villiers has taken more responsibility in ODI cricket, as has kept and bowled; now he fields, bats and captains. Although that is no excuse, it does illustrate how much he contributes and how he manages to do this and still become the number one batsman in the world.
| Player | Matches | Runs | Average | High Score | 100s |
| AB de Villiers | 190 | 8045 | 53.27 | 162* | 20 |
| Hashim Amla | 121 | 5919 | 54.30 | 159 | 21 |
T20: Worlds apart
We saw de Villiers and Amla both average 50 and above in Test and ODI cricket, but their T20I cricket record is a bit disappointing as they both average below 30. Their batsmen rankings of 40 and 24 respectively in T20Is show how dismal their performances have been for their country in the shorter format of the game.
Though one might expect De Villiers to be miles ahead in the format, Amla has a better average of the two with 25.46 in 28 matches compared to de Villiers’ 22.38 in 61 matches. However, this does not mean that these two legendary batsmen are only suited for the longer formats of the game. Despite being average for their country, they both excel elsewhere.
Amla has shined for his domestic side, the Cobras and his county team, Surrey. He has played 14 T20 games with the Cobras thus far and has scored 526 runs with an average of 43.83 and for Surrey; he has played four games making 164 runs with an average of 54.66.
On the other hand, De Villiers has played domestic cricket for the Titans and more notably in the IPL for the Dehli Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore. He has played 104 games in the IPL, scored 2570 runs with an average of 36.71 with a high score of 133* and it’s not surprising that Bangalore retains him year after year.
De Villiers has played more T2O games and has been more successful in producing big scores, making two centuries and 23 half-centuries in all of his T20 matches. This makes him one of the most reliable and extremely feared batsmen for any limited overs bowler, as de Villiers is unpredictable and you’ll never know when if he’ll destroy you or get out easily.
| Player | Matches | Runs | Average | High Score | 50s |
| AB de Villiers | 61 | 1097 | 22.38 | 79* | 5 |
| Hashim Amla | 28 | 662 | 25.46 | 56 | 1 |
Combining Tests, ODIs and T20Is together, Hashim Amla stands out average wise as the best.
| Player | Matches | Runs | Average | 100s | Catches |
| AB de Villiers | 349 | 16748 | 48.40 | 41 | 397 |
| Hashim Amla | 233 | 13351 | 50.57 | 44 | 140 |
But it doesn’t matter who is the best between the two, because they stand out from all others and are different in their technique, personality and the role they play in for their team. They are incredible, humble and brilliant cricketers and have already cemented their name in the sport as legends.