Rendezvous with batting superstars Kohli & AB

Two of the world's best batsmen- Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers are on top of the run charts in IPL 9. Scoring a half-century in each of their four innings till now, Kohli and de Villiers have been in prolific form for Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Catch RCB’s dynamic duo in a special conversation with IPLT20.com

There is no better sight in cricket at the moment than to see you two bat together. Tell us how does it feel to bat together and make batting look easy?

AB de Villiers: It’s an absolute privilege to play with Virat. We love batting together. I think the most important thing is we both understand each other’s game. We have worked so closely in the last few years and I really know what his strengths and weaknesses are, not that he really has a lot of weaknesses. But I know that he loves running between the wickets and I feed off that. We both feed off our energies and that’s what keeps us going in the field.

Virat Kohli: Likewise, it has been a pleasure to have known AB personally. I remember it was in 2011 when he came on board. I then briefly met him in South Africa, we were playing a one-day series there. I told him that I was really happy to have him in RCB and play alongside with him.

Since then, I have learnt a lot of things from him, we’ve become very good friends as well and that shows on the pitch.  As AB said, we like to run hard between the wickets, we both run fast and have that sort of coordination between us.

We don’t have to say much and we know exactly which fielder to take on. So, that really helps building partnerships and somewhere in between his stroke play always comes through and most often I sort of play the anchor role. He keeps me going and he keeps me calm if I lose my composure at times and that’s the best thing about batting alongside AB.

(He is) Such a world class player, it is always good to communicate with someone who actually understands the game so well and is watching every ball so keenly. He also knows what’s going on at the other end, rather than just worrying about his own game.  Those are times when you learn so much from him and are able to string in those big partnerships.

Tell us what is the conversation like when you two start building the innings and then change gears together?

AB: We don’t talk a lot. We understand each other and we both know what’s required at a specific moment. Once or twice we will have a little chat in the middle when the opposition bowlers are doing well, but other than that we are pretty quiet, go with the flow and try to find a bit of rhythm and momentum. 

AB, Virat is the finest example of classical batsmanship. What are your three favourite Virat shots? 

That’s difficult (laughs). One happened against Pune Supergiants on Friday that I haven’t seen very much – walking across and playing the lap shot, I haven’t seen much of that. And then there is his cover drive that he plays really well and I think he’s probably the best Indian who plays a short ball really well. I have seen him play a short ball well all across the world, so him playing a pull short is sheer class.

Virat, we saw you try a reverse sweep in Bengaluru against DD. Tell us how tempting it is to not try all the AB de Villiers hallmark shots?

Well, no one is as quick as AB on the field and I think his reactions and his reflexes are just unbelievable. We have to train so hard and this guy just comes off after rest and is on the button again, but that’s his great skill. He understands his reflexes, his speed and he uses that to his advantage.

He uses that in his batting, which is difficult. I can play that lap shot to spinners, I tried one on Friday, I play conventional lap shots, but reverse sweep to fast bowlers, I can’t even think about it and AB executes them for sixes. So, you know there is a massive difference there. But, I am trying to add variety to my game, even last year in a crucial game I had to play couple of those shots.

You can’t be predictable - you have to stay ahead of the bowler. If there is a change in plan from the opposition, you have to come up with something for yourself. So, tonight was good to execute a few, but I don’t recommend those shots for myself or try them in the nets too much. But, I do that to spinners and not to fast bowlers.

Who are the bowlers in this tournament for whom you both have to sit together and make plans against?

Virat: Well, we don’t really talk about bowlers as such and it’s very important to stick to your own plans. We know for a fact that bowlers would be sceptical of their plans while bowling to us, so we don’t want a situation where we will be giving them an upper hand.

We understand everyone’s strengths and weaknesses, but it’s very important to feel good about your own game and look to dominate any bowler that comes our way. The moment you start giving respect to one bowler, the pressure starts building up.

So, we just play on instinct, and like AB said, we watch the ball, communicate every now and then when the momentum slows down. But apart from that, we treat every bowler the same. We just see that white thing coming towards us and let our talent takeover.

Courtesy: IPLT20.com