Former India spin guru Anil Kumble took a risk by leaving AB de Villiers out of his all-time Indian Premier League (IPL) XI. Kumble went on to explain why he left out de Villiers, naming 2011 World Cup-winning captain and four-time IPL champion MS Dhoni ahead of the South African star.
During their playing careers, both Dhoni and de Villiers established themselves as dangerous batters of the cricket ball, with signature strokes linked with their names. While de Villiers is commonly recognised as ‘Mr. 360’ for his incredible ability to score runs from every area of the pitch, Dhoni was the inventor of the ‘helicopter shot’ and a match-finisher.
During a two-part edition of ‘Legends Lounge’ on JioCinema, Chris Gayle, Suresh Raina, Scott Styris, Parthiv Patel, Robin Uthappa, and Anil Kumble had to choose an all-time IPL XI. During the section, Kumble said that it would be “tough” to choose the former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) player over the CSK captain.
“It is really tough to get AB de Villiers in my squad because MS Dhoni comes in at five as captain and wicket keeper and (Kieron) Pollard at six. “At No. 6, I would look at the influence the specific player has had in terms of winning matches from tough circumstances, and of course, trophies are something that I looked at as well,” Kumble added.
It’s worth mentioning that de Villiers is the sixth-highest run-scorer in the league’s history. The renowned right-hander accumulated 5,162 runs at an average of 39.71 in 184 appearances and 170 innings, with his greatest score being 133 runs in a single inning. In any event, the South African legend’s contributions to the game have not been forgotten. He is recognised as one of the finest players by many fans and members of the cricketing community.
