Former South Africa batter AB de Villiers spoke exclusively about his RCB teammate Virat Kohli and the Indian batter’s golden run of form in international cricket.
Published: September 30, 2026, 2:35 PM IST
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Virat Kohli (left) with AB de Villiers(Photo: ANI)
Virat Kohli is 37 years of age now – an age where most athletes will be ready to put their feet up and relax rather than go through the grind of international cricketBut Kohli appears to have found a new lease of life and joy for the game in the last couple of years, summed up by his record-extending 55th ODI century in the first game vs West Indies where he blasted an unbeaten 139 off 88 balls with 9 sixes.
Since the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai, Kohli has notched up nearly 1000 runs – 899 to be precise – and more important than that he has been batting in top gearKohli’s former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) teammate AB de Villiers was full of praise for the Indian maestro and believes the former India captain is current hitting his ‘third peak’.
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“I am really happy to see the way Kohli is playingThe aggressive nature of his batting is bringing the best out of himI have seen his first peak in international cricket between 2012 and 2014, then again between 2016 and 2019I think he is now hitting his third peak and ready to take his game to the next level,” AB de Villiers told India.com in an exclusive interview on Wednesday.
899 runs at an average of 112.3
But that’s just routine for #ViratKohli! How many runs will he score in the 2nd ODI? #INDvWI 2nd ODI WED, 30th SEP, 1 PM pic.twitter.com/DiWKfDD9yy
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) September 29, 2026
Kohli completed his 15000 ODI runs in the first ODI match vs West Indies and in the process became the fastest-ever batter to achieve this feat, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar, taking only 315 ODIs to reach the landmarkFormer South Africa and RCB batter De Villiers, who will be leading South Africa Legends team in the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2026 in Dubai starting on Saturday (October 3), believes change in Kohli’s batting could be due to transition in ODI cricket.
“I have seen a major transition in the approach of the batters in ODI cricket since the 2010s to the 2020sThe Powerplay overs have become very important but that could change in ODI games in countries like England and South AfricaIn SA, if you don’t pay respect to the new ball, you can easily be 3-4 wickets down early.
“The biggest change has been the approach of top 3 battersThey know that if you can get your eye in, the damage that you can do is monumental,” De Villiers felt.
Virat Kohli has achieved everything in international cricket: AB de Villers
The former Royal Challengers Bengaluru captain appears a lot more relaxed now in India jersey as compared to his early years and AB de Villiers believes that it is due to the fact that he is in the back-end of his career.
“I think it is a natural thing to happen at the back-end of your careerI think Kohli wants to sign off by winning his last ODI World CupHe understands ‘how grateful you must be’ and ‘how lucky you have been’ to achieve all that he has done in his careerWhen you start your career, you want to win everything but Kohli has won everything in international cricketI had told Kohli in our chat a few years back that you don’t have to be as aggressive anymore and he seems to be listening now,” De Villiers said.
I won’t go to ODI World Cup without Rohit Sharma: AB de Villiers
While Kohli has been in golden form, his teammate and other half of ‘RoKo’ duo – Rohit Sharma – has been struggling with inconsistencyTill Rohit scored his 34th ODI ton in 3rd game vs England at Lord’s in July, his position in side was still uncertain.
But De Villiers believes India should not think about heading to ODI World Cup 2027 in South Africa next year without Rohit Sharma in the squad“I think it’s a personal call of the selectors over Rohit Sharma, but I would definitely not go to ODI World Cup without himThe amount of leadership quality and belief that he instills in the team is unmatchable.
“Over the years, I have played with plenty of ‘older’ guys in the squad and you can strategically place them in the field so that they don’t become a liabilityFor me, it’s a no-brainer to have him in the side,” the South African legend said about Rohit Sharma.
AB de Villiers announced his retirement from all formats of the game in November 2021 but returned to the World Championship of Legends in 2025 to the Proteas to the title with a win over Pakistan in the finalAsked how he keeps himself fit for the WCL, De Villiers said, “It was great to comeback to a tournament like WCL and win the titleI surprised myself with the way that I battedI start training a couple of months prior to the tournamentI have always been a naturally active and fit person but hitting the balls was not so easyI am ready to have a go again in the WCL and we have a new addition as my former teammate Faf du Plessis is joining the side as well.”
(The World Championship of Legend (WCL) 2026 will be telecast LIVE on FanCode website and app from October 3)
