“Virat and I were 5th-6th gear all the way” - AB de Villiers opens up on why Kohli was his favorite T20 batting partner
Former South African and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) legend AB de Villiers has named Virat Kohli as his favorite T20 batting partner. De Villiers admitted that his and Kohli’s personalities did clash to an extent, but they found a way to work out things for the betterment of RCB.
Kohli and De Villiers hold the record for the top two highest partnerships in the Indian Premier League (IPL) history. They added 229 against against Gujarat Lions in Bengaluru in 2016 and 215* versus Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai in 2015.
In a Q&A session on his YouTube channel, De Villiers was asked to pick his favorite batting partner. He named Hashim Amla while playing for South Africa and Kohli for RCB.
“I absolutely loved batting with Hashim Amla for the Proteas. I think we got some incredible partnerships together. In T20 cricket and IPL, definitely Virat. Our personalities and our way of playing clashed a little bit. We were both very intense. Both wanted to take the game away from the opposition immediately, which sounds like the dream partnership," he said.
“Sometimes it clashes, but Virat and I know each other so well, we managed to find a way to make it work because we understand each other’s game so well. I know him so well off the field, we found a way to make that clash of personalities…,” De Villiers added.
The 39-year-old admitted that at times the adrenaline rush would get the better of both him and Kohli, but added that on days when it came off, they were literally unstoppable.
“Sometimes, we would go too hard. He would get out, I would get out and all of a sudden RCB would be 30/3. Virat and I were fifth-sixth gear all the way guys, which paid off sometimes. In the IPL, I can think of that 200 partnership in Mumbai. At the Chinnaswamy, another 200 partnership. We always played for the team and nothing else mattered,” the former Proteas captain asserted.
Kohli is the all-time leading run-scorer in IPL, with 7263 runs from 237 matches. De Villiers ended his career in the T20 league with 5162 runs from 184 games.
“My favorite innings is my very final Test hundred for South Africa” - AB de Villiers
Responding to a query about his favorite innings, De Villiers picked his last Test hundred against Australia in Gqeberha in March 2018.
“My favorite innings is my very final Test hundred for South Africa. I scored a hundred against Australia. You guys know that I love the Test format most of them all. It’s the ultimate challenge and test for a player. To score a hundred against Australia in South Africa in my last Test series was very special. St. George’s Park, very fond memories there. I also played my very first Test match there against England,” he stated.
De Villiers hammered an unbeaten 126 off 146 in the first innings as South Africa went on to win the Test by six wickets.