Former South African batter AB de Villiers has revealed one of the most interesting aspects of his cricket career. De Villiers was known for his fearless batting display but he has named a bowler whom he found very tough to face.
Former Royal Challengers Bangalore batter has picked the late Australian legend Shane Warne as the toughest bowler he ever faced. During his illustrious international career that spanned nearly 15 years AB de Villiers showcased his dominance against almost every bowler in the world. However, the South African batsman faced difficulties against the charismatic Shane Warne during his early days in international cricket.
While having an interview with the Jio Cinema, AB De Villiers talked about how Shane Warne used to notice every small and minute movement of any batter.
The former South African batter stated,”Oh, I think Shane Warne in 2006 the first time I travelled to Australia, not so much because of skill and technique and also just the presence of the man and the aura he carried. And obviously, I was quite inexperienced. I knew from the get-go he was going to get me out. When I faced, the first ball, went like, it’s nothing to this.”
“I mean, it’s pretty simple. But when I looked up, he was looking at me like, ‘What now?'” de Villiers continued. “Gilly was talking about my bat lift beyond the stumps. And it was just I got 60.”
De Villiers recalled,”That game felt easy, but he was just a smart, incredible player, and it worked out pretty quickly. That’s my technique. It’s not quite spot-on when it comes to playing straight. So, he was really going slow, slow, slider straight.”
“And I missed the straight one and not long after that, that was my weakness for 2005, 06 and 07, I would miss straight balls, especially angling a bit back. I would fall over, and touch my head. My bat lift was a little bit beyond my back and I had to pay the juice.”
ICC World Cup 2023 Schedule Announced, Click Here To Check Full Schedule
“I mean I had to go back to the drawing board to figure out my technique, but he was a man who could figure out little things like that and understand there’s something not right with this guy’s bat lift. Let’s go straight and just sided it in there and ultimately I missed one.”
In the modern day cricket, he has picked the star Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah and outstanding spinner Rashid Khan as the most difficult bowler.
