Mumbai: They have both been compared with South African legend AB de Villiers for their unconventional batting and ability to take bowling attacks apart. While Suryakumar Yadav has displayed his ability to bat 360-degree for India and Mumbai Indians and earned comparison with de Villiers, South Africa’s Dewald Brevis baggedd the moniker Baby AB after smashing 162 off 57 balls during a domestic T20 match.
On Saturday, the Indian star challenged the South African youngster to repeat his devastating knock for the Titans against the Knights in the CSA T20 Challenge in November 2022 while playing for MI Cape Town in the upcoming SA20.
In a virtual reunion of two generations of Mumbai Indians players, Yadav and the South African teen batting sensation Brevis caught up over a video call recently and shared notes on batting and enjoying the game.
The 10-minute-long video shared on MI TV is full of fun, banter and camaraderie between the two. The talented uncapped cricketer from South Africa expressed his happiness for being a part of the MI family in not one but two big leagues.
Surya, the numero uno position in the ICC T20I Rankings, lauded the young Protea for his brilliant knock. Starting the conversation in his witty style, SKY quipped, “Last time I saw you smashed 160-165 runs off 50-55 balls in a T20 game. So now in ODIs, if you get to bat around 100 balls, are you going to score a triple hundred.”
Replying to which Brevis said he would love to do that but insisted that he would approach every format differently by assessing the conditions., Mumbai Indians informed in a release on Saturday. The teen sensation even hailed SKY’s batting exploits in the T20Is.
Surya was in awe of Brevis’ knock of 162 and even asked the youngster what did he eat that day. To which Brevis gigglingly responded, “It was like another normal day for me. It (that knock) just happened. I didn’t even realize what I was doing at that moment, everything just happened at the moment, at one point I even told the non-striker that I think I’ll try and hit every ball for six. I don’t know it just happened it was a special innings. But I must say that what you have achieved is incredible, congratulations on being the No.1 T20I batsman.”
The India star responded to the young Turk saying, “I am just trying to copy you sometimes. The way you bat. You have to teach me one thing, how do you hit that no-look shot, no-look six? I just want to learn that from you.”
Brevis responded by saying, “It would be an honour, but I would love to learn lots of shots from you as well. The funny thing is My no-look shot just happens, it’s weird but I don’t know it just happens.”
The chat between the two was’t just about cricket! The South African informed that he cooked butter chicken at home and wishes to excel at it. Surya even told Brevis that his wife will cook all his favourite Indian dishes when he was in India, and the foodie in the youngster said, “Please, I really need it, my body needs it. I’m not going to lie.”
Brevis even admitted that he really misses spending time with Rohit Sharma, SKY and his other MI teammates and cannot wait for the next season to start.
Brevis told SKY that he’s looking forward to sharing the dressing room with some T20 specialists in MI Cape Town, “It’s going to be so exciting. It’s going to be good. It’s such a big thing. Especially this year, I really can’t wait to meet the superstars that I am going to play with. It’s a great opportunity to learn and grow. The MI Family is one big family, and it’s lovely to be part of it.”
–IANS