Mr 360: Is AB de Villiers the best finisher at the moment in cricket?
It has been three years since AB de Villiers hung his boots from all international formats of the game. And yet, he rarely gives that impression when he steps out to wield his willow. Notably, de Villiers was completely inactive before he joined RCB for the 2021 edition of the IPL. The 14th edition of the league was the only professional cricket he played in five months, but almost magically, he did what he has always been known for.
IPL heroics
What was more worthy about the South African legend’s performance was the fact that he found himself going at the tricky surface of Chennai, where every batter struggled to cope up. In seven matches, de Villiers notched up three half-centuries, scoring runs at his belligerent best.
Even at 37, he can give an 18-year-old a run for his money, can hit sixes at will, and can simply throw the pitch out of the equation. And no surprise, his national team management wants him to break his retirement and return to don his national jersey in the upcoming T20 World Cup.
Mt. 5K for Mr 360@ABdeVilliers17 now has 5000 runs in #VIVOIPL and he gets there in 161 innings. After Warner, he is only the second overseas player to reach the mark. https://t.co/NQ9SSSBbVT #DCvRCB #VIVOIPL pic.twitter.com/rCRVimv3YR
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 27, 2021
De Villiers has hit the joint second-highest number of sixes (135) in the IPL in overs 16-20, and he is only behind MS Dhoni’s 162. Strike rate is the best parameter to judge a batter’s hitting prowess and no one comes close to de Villiers’ 224.60 in death overs in the IPL. In fact, not only IPL but all across T20 cricket, AB de Villiers’ strike rate (216.62) is the world’s best.
One of the leading six-hitters in the IPL, he has 5056 runs at a strike rate of 152.38 and he is the only IPL player to complete 5000 IPL runs at 150+ strike rate and an average above 40. During chases, he has 1950 runs in 79 innings at a strike rate of 138.30, including 90 sixes. But it is his numbers in the death overs that are most astonishing. AB has smashed 1808 runs at an average and strike rate of 46.36 and 224.60 respectively, including 135 sixes and 131 fours in death overs in IPL.
Praise from Virat
Through his exploits, he has left even the world’s best in awe of himself. Perhaps his captain at RCB, Virat Kohli, best described his effort after he smashed an unbeaten 42-ball 75 when RCB were 3/60 in the 9th over against DC, and he showed his ability for the nth time. His incredible knock, which included a 23-run last-over, proved crucial as RCB won by just a run in the end.
“He (ABD) hasn’t played competitive cricket for 5 months, but if you look at him bat it doesn’t feel like he doesn’t play international cricket anymore. Hats off to him, keeps doing it again and again for us. I’ll say this again. He hasn’t played for five months, just watch that inning.”
“Who is the world’s best finisher” is a longstanding debate and perhaps might never get a confirmed answer. But what about de Villiers? The numbers never lie.
