Not Tendulkar! AB de Villiers Names This Indian Cricketer Among His Top Batters
AB de Villiers has named Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting and Virat Kohli as his top batters and Mohammad Asif, Dale Steyn and Glenn McGrath as his top bowlers.
Former South Africa cricketer AB de Villiers has said that among all-format batters, his top favourites are compatriot Jacques Kallis, former Australia captain Ricky Ponting and his friend and former Royal Challengers Bengaluru teammate Virat Kohli.
While cross-era comparisons often spark intense debate, they are subjective and can lead to unexpected conclusions.
After weighing the merits of Windies legend Brian Lara, De Villiers finalised a trio of modern and past greats for his list of top batters.
The bowlers' list drew even more intrigue as De Villiers picked a blend of raw pace, pinpoint accuracy and masterful swing.
AB de Villiers' top three batters: Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, Virat Kohli
. @ABdeVilliers17 reveals the batters and bowlers who stood out to him, the names that left a lasting impression. 👏 #WCL2025 👉 18th July to 2nd August, Every Day Live on Star Sports Network pic.twitter.com/2jUrgNDXvO — Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) July 26, 2025
One big miss on De Villiers' list was batting legend Sachin Tendulkar, who remains the highest run-scorer across formats, as well as Kumar Sangakkara, who is second on that list.
Kohli is the third-highest run-scorer across formats, with 27599 runs in 550 matches at a stunning average of 52.27. Ponting, on the other hand, finished with 27483 runs in 560 matches with an average of 45.95 and a whopping 71 hundreds to his name.
In the bowlers list too, De Villiers ignored Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, James Anderson and former India cricketer Anil Kumble.
McGrath is the fifth-highest wicket-taker across formats in history, with 949 wickets in 376 matches at an impressive economy of 2.93.
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