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Appearing on a recent podcast during the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) stalwart AB de Villiers shared his thoughts on Dewald Brevis not being part of his former team. Dewald Brevis, often referred to as a 'younger version' of de Villiers due to their similar batting styles, was a highly anticipated pick for RCB during the IPL 2025 mega auction.
AB de Villiers wants Dewald Brevis to play for RCB not CSK
Despite widespread speculation, the prodigious young batter went unsold, much to the surprise of many fans. However, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) later acquired him for Rs 2.2 crore as a replacement for the injured Gurjapneet Singh. In a lighthearted comment, de Villiers remarked that it was a shame Brevis didn't get to play for RCB, but he expressed hope that it might still happen in the future.
""From South Africa, I would say Dewald Brevis (who could become the next 360-degree player in the game). Yeah, he has the Number 17 on the back. He plays similar kind of cricket. He is very attacking and still has a lot to learn. He is playing for CSK and not RCB, that is a shame," de Villiers said during a podcast with Shubhankar Mishra.
Brevis, playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in IPL 2025, made significant impact despite his team's poor season. The 22-year-old, who was brought in as a replacement player, scored 225 runs in six matches at an impressive average of 37.50. This included two half-centuries, with a top score of 57. In the same podcast, the 41-year-old was asked to name the toughest Indian bowler he ever faced. He immediately named the ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah. De Villiers explained that while Bumrah didn't always trouble him, their matchups were always great battles, and he has a tremendous amount of respect for the Indian speedster.
"Obviously Bumrah. Bumrah is one of the greatest bowlers I've ever played against. He never troubled me too much, luckily, I got hold of him a bit. He is still the same. I faced him at his peak, don't you worry. He was amazing and we've always had great battles against each other. I have a lot of respect for him," he added.
De Villiers faced Jasprit Bumrah across all three formats of the game. During India's 2018 tour of South Africa, de Villiers scored 58 runs off 111 balls from Bumrah in Test matches, getting dismissed by him three times. They also faced each other in two One-Day Internationals during the same tour. In addition to their international encounters, the two players had many face-offs in the IPL over the years. De Villiers managed to score 125 runs off 85 balls against Bumrah in the league, with an impressive strike rate of 147.1. Despite this, Bumrah was able to dismiss the former South African batter three times in their IPL matchups.
Meanwhile, De Villiers recently struck his third century of the World Champions of Legends to help South Africa Champions beat Pakistan Champions in the final and lift the title on August 3. He cracked a blistering yet unbeaten 120 off just 60 deliveries as South Africa chased down a daunting target of 196 in just 16.5 overs.
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