By now it has been established, beyond reasonable doubt, that Abraham Benjamin de Villiers is no mere mortal. He has long been suspected of being an alien from a distant land, sent to our world to observe Humankind. He is widely regarded as the best batsman of his era. He has been compared to superheroes. He has scored the fastest 50, 100, and 150 in ODIs. He has done everything a cricketer can possibly do on the field. He has opened batting. He has kept wickets. He has bowled (although that facet of his game is his least impressive). He has led in a World Cup. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: India vs South Africa 2nd Test at Bengaluru
Where does one start when talking about AB de Villiers’ Test career? Perhaps we ought to start with the most shocking statistic: he has a Test average of just 17.25 against Bangladesh. When Mashrafe Mortaza and Shakib Al Hasan are grandparents, they will sit their young ‘uns on their knees and tell them stories of how they managed to rein in the most unstoppable batsman of the era. Or maybe the next time de Villiers plays Bangladesh in a Test he will score an unbeaten 300 and set the record straight. READ: AB de Villiers: An online journalist’s nightmare
He also has a surprisingly barren record against New Zealand — he averages a meagre 39 against them. Against India he averages 41.04, against England 45.50, and against Australia 48.26. But then he also averages 65.41 against Pakistan, 62.81 against Sri Lanka, and a gargantuan 84.18 against West Indies. That de Villiers is an oddity can be seen in his surprising difference in home and away averages; while most batsmen tend to be lions at home and mice away (Mahela Jayawardene averages 59.72 at home, and 41.50 overseas, while Michael Clarke averages a mammoth 62.05 at home and an average 40.78), de Villiers is the opposite: at home he scores his runs at 47.98, while overseas he gets them at 51.88. For good measure, he averages 116.20 at neutral venues. This includes his highest Test score of 278 not out. READ: AB de Villiers’ 100th Test at Bangalore: Home match for a South African against India
But these are just numbers. Much like Virender Sehwag, the full extent of de Villiers’ mastery must be witnessed to comprehend. Take the first Test of the ongoing series against India; de Villiers was struggling to put bat on ball, and was almost dismissed twice before reaching double figures. After being made to look like a novice by the Indian spinners, he saw Hashim Amla get dismissed. It was almost as if someone turned a switch. Out came the reverse sweep for four against Ravichandran Ashwin, his chief tormentor. It was followed by a back foot punch for four more. Then came a paddle-sweep off Amit Mishra, followed by a conventional sweep against the turn. Ravindra Jadeja was sent sailing over cover for yet another boundary, swept to square-leg, then tonked away on the leg side. From looking completely out of sorts, de Villiers raced to 63. He stood tall while the rest of the batsmen folded around him. It was a thrilling, calculated assault that made Indian supporters more than a little uneasy. READ: AB de Villiers: Don Bradman of this generation?
De Villiers will play his 100th Test at his home ground in India, M Chinnaswamy Stadium at Bengaluru. The crowds know and love him for his exploits with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Indian Premier League (IPL). He has shown just how destructive he can be while playing the shortest format of the sport. He has shown off his paddle shots, his swats over cover, his pick-up sweeps over fine leg, his reverse sweeps, his cultured slog over midwicket. He has shown the ability to play textbook cover-drives that make puritans weep with joy. He has also shown the ability to play with such unorthodoxy that those same puritans would weep with disbelief. He has scored a 31-ball 100 after coming in to bat in the 39th over of an ODI and he has scored a 220-ball 33 to draw a Test. READ: AB de Villiers: The Punisher
Is there anything de Villiers cannot do? There must be. We just do not know of it yet. Congratulations on the latest century, AB.
(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek who loves cricket more than cricketers. His Twitter handle is @ShiamakUnwalla)
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.
If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.