IPL 2021: "Let’s see 20 overs of ABD" - Sunil Gavaskar wants AB de Villiers to open the innings for RCB
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar was left mesmerized by AB de Villiers' heroics in RCB's game against the Delhi Capitals (DC) on Tuesday. AB de Villiers raced his way to an unbeaten 75 off only 42 balls - a knock that turned out to be the difference between both the teams as DC lost by just one run.
Sunil Gavaskar termed this knock as 'magical' and 'jaw-dropping' while adding that AB de Villiers brings great joy to the fans with his audacious batting.
"It's amazing. It's just magical. You can walk around the earth, just to see this man bat because he brings in so much. He gives you so much joy, he makes your jaw drop with the kind of audacity with which he plays some shots," said Gavaskar on Star Sports after RCB reclaimed the top spot in IPL 2021 points table.
Also Read | AB de Villiers becomes the 6th player to score 5,000 runs in IPL
Sunil Gavaskar also opined that he'd love to see more of AB de Villiers' batting and suggested that the 37-year-old should open the innings for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
"When you see a genius like that, you want to go and just watch him carry on. You want to say to the opposition – 'Listen, why don't you send him to open the batting because we can get to see more of him rather than him coming in the 10th or the 11th over. Let's see 20 overs of ABD', that's what I, as a former batsman, always say when I see AB de Villiers in this kind of form," Sunil Gavaskar said.
Sunil Gavaskar impressed with AB de Villiers' remarkable versatility
AB de Villiers, fondly known as Mr. 360, has an incredible ability to play several kinds of shots to the same delivery. He put this skill on display yesterday when he ramped the ball towards the third man at the last moment - a shot that caught the eye of the legendary Sunil Gavaskar.
Gavaskar said of the shot:
"We talk about the big sixes. There was one shot where he just opened the face of the bat and ramped the ball down to the third man. That was an incredible shot because it was hit literally at the last second when he opened the face of the bat."
The Bengaluru-based side have five wins in six games now and are already a strong contender for one of the playoff spots.