“There is not much between them. But I think Virat Kohli just pips him”: When Shane Warne called Virat Kohli a better player than AB de Villiers

In 2016, RCB had a terrific campaign and Shane Warne called Virat Kohli a better player than AB de Villiers.

The news of the demise of Shane Warne has shocked the whole cricketing world. Shane Warne was arguably one of the greatest players to ever play the game. He was the first bowler in the world to claim 700 test wickets. He ended his career with 708 test wickets, whereas he has 293 ODI wickets under his belt. Warne also bowled the “Ball of the Century” in the 1993 Ashes.

Apart from his on-field records, Warne has had a lot of controversies throughout his career. He failed the drug test ahead of the 2003 World Cup. Warne even passed on the critical information to a bookmaker about the game. He has also been in a rift with Muttiah Muralitharan, Arjuna Ranatunga and Steve Waugh.  Despite all the off-field controversies, Warne is hugely admired in the cricketing circuit.

Shane Warne picks AB de Villiers over Virat Kohli

The 2016 IPL campaign will be remembered for the Royal Challengers Bangalore. They lost in the final to the Sunrisers Hyderabad, but the way they played in that season was outstanding. Recently, Virat also said that he still regrets losing the 2016 IPL final to the Sunrisers Hyderabad at their home venue.

Virat Kohli was at his brutal best that year, and he broke all the records. He scored 973 runs at an average of 81.08, whereas his S/R was 152.03. He scored seven half-centuries and four centuries in the campaign. The record of Virat Kohli in 2016 looks unbreakable. AB de Villiers also had a great season, where he scored 687 runs.

Both Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers scored hundreds in their partnership against Gujarat Lions at their home ground. In 2016, Shane Warne said that Virat Kohli is a better player than AB de Villiers. 2016 was a dream year for Virat, apart from IPL, Virat had a terrific season in the international circuit as well.

“De Villiers is a 360-degree player. He plays reverses, the lapses and all those sorts of things but hasn’t really played too many of ‘those’ innings Virat Kohli has played,” Warne said.

“There is not much between them. But I think Virat Kohli just pips him.”

AB de Villiers is an all-time great of Royal Challengers Bangalore. Despite, not winning a single trophy, he has been an extraordinary part of the franchise. de Villiers has scored 4491 runs for the RCB in 156 games. Overall, he has scored 5162 runs at an average of 31.60 in IPL, and he ended as the 6th highest overall run-scorer.