Great South African fast bowler Dale Steyn sparked a debate between two of the most explosive modern batsmen in the game – AB de Villiers and Suryakumar Yadav.
Both AB de Villiers and Suryakumar Yadav are known for their 360-degree shots and unconventional stroke play, but they shine in slightly different areas. De Villiers, the former South African captain and one of the greatest batsmen of all time, dominated across all formats.
AB de Villiers and Suryakumar Yadav’s debate ends as Dale Steyn delivers a brutal verdict
But India’s T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav is an expert player in the shortest format only. He has played 37 ODIs but failed to repeat his success in the T20 format and got a chance to play only one Test for India. Despite this, Suryakumar’s innovative stroke play is often compared to De Villiers.
Also read: “Pain in pain”: KL Rahul’s big revelation about Virat Kohli’s ‘ego’
However, Dale Steyn does not feel that the Indian captain is close to his former Proteas skipper even in the shorter formats of the game and spent most of his time on the flight berating Suryakumar.
Actually, while waiting for the flight, Steyn was asked while tweeting from Mumbai who he would choose: AB or Sky. His reply was cheeky and candid – all day AB, twice on Sunday and forever.
Steyn’s comment instantly went viral as Suryakumar, one of the fastest bowlers of all time, heaped praise on the legendary batsman de Villiers.
When Dale Steyn said: “SKY could be India’s version of ABD”
However, in 2022, Dale Steyn described Suryakumar Yadav’s batting as smart and versatile. He highlighted how Suryakumar uses ball speed, hits behind square, and plays both back-foot and front-foot drives with ease. Steyn said that on fast, batsman-friendly Australian pitches, Surya can score all around the ground, making him a true 360-degree player.
Comparing Suryakumar to AB de Villiers, he said that India’s T20 captain could be the Indian version of the South African legend. He had said, “Sky is an amazing 360-degree player and reminds me of AB de Villiers. He could be India’s version of AB de Villiers.”
Steyn’s final praise for AB de Villiers
However, last year, De Villiers once again got Steyn’s vote after the former South Africa captain stole the show in the 2025 World Championship of Legends final.
De Villiers played a blistering inning of 120 runs in just 60 balls to lead the South African Champions to a comfortable nine-wicket win over the Pakistan Champions.
Also read: Sunil Gavaskar told India’s biggest threat, which can spoil the hopes of T20 World Cup 2026.
He posted for ABD: “Unpopular/popular opinion. AB is still better than half the international players in the IPL. Maybe even more.”
Suryakumar Yadav vs AB de Villiers in numbers
De Villiers dominated across all formats with his 360-degree stroke play. In 228 ODIs, he scored 9,577 runs at an average of 53.5 and a strike rate of over 101, including 25 centuries and 53 fifties. In T20Is, he scored 1,672 runs in 78 matches at an impressive strike rate of 135.0.
His Test career included 114 matches, 8,765 runs at an average of 50.0 and 22 centuries. Known for innovative shots and dashing runs between the wickets, the legendary Proteas player also contributed with 172 ODI catches. In T20, he has 9424 runs to his name in 340 matches at an amazing strike rate of over 150.
Suryakumar Yadav, on the other hand, has 2959 runs in 102 T20Is at an average of 36.98 and an impressive strike rate of 165.03. He also has 773 runs in 37 ODIs and 8 runs in one Test. Talking about T20, the right-handed batsman has so far scored 9146 runs in 349 matches at an excellent average of 35.31 and strike rate of 152.99.
Dale Steyn cooks up Suryakumar Yadav with ‘AB de Villiers all day, twice on Sunday and forever’ comment
Great South African fast bowler Dale Steyn sparked a debate between two of the most explosive modern batsmen in the game – AB de Villiers and Suryakumar Yadav.
Both AB de Villiers and Suryakumar Yadav are known for their 360-degree shots and unconventional stroke play, but they shine in slightly different areas. De Villiers, the former South African captain and one of the greatest batsmen of all time, dominated across all formats.
AB de Villiers and Suryakumar Yadav’s debate ends as Dale Steyn delivers a brutal verdict
But India’s T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav is an expert player in the shortest format only. He has played 37 ODIs but failed to repeat his success in the T20 format and got a chance to play only one Test for India. Despite this, Suryakumar’s innovative stroke play is often compared to De Villiers.
Also read: “Pain in pain”: KL Rahul’s big revelation about Virat Kohli’s ‘ego’
However, Dale Steyn does not feel that the Indian captain is close to his former Proteas skipper even in the shorter formats of the game and spent most of his time on the flight berating Suryakumar.
Actually, while waiting for the flight, Steyn was asked while tweeting from Mumbai who he would choose: AB or Sky. His reply was cheeky and candid – all day AB, twice on Sunday and forever.
Steyn’s comment instantly went viral as Suryakumar, one of the fastest bowlers of all time, heaped praise on the legendary batsman de Villiers.
When Dale Steyn said: “SKY could be India’s version of ABD”
However, in 2022, Dale Steyn described Suryakumar Yadav’s batting as smart and versatile. He highlighted how Suryakumar uses ball speed, hits behind square, and plays both back-foot and front-foot drives with ease. Steyn said that on fast, batsman-friendly Australian pitches, Surya can score all around the ground, making him a true 360-degree player.
Comparing Suryakumar to AB de Villiers, he said that India’s T20 captain could be the Indian version of the South African legend. He had said, “Sky is an amazing 360-degree player and reminds me of AB de Villiers. He could be India’s version of AB de Villiers.”
Steyn’s final praise for AB de Villiers
However, last year, De Villiers once again got Steyn’s vote after the former South Africa captain stole the show in the 2025 World Championship of Legends final.
De Villiers played a blistering inning of 120 runs in just 60 balls to lead the South African Champions to a comfortable nine-wicket win over the Pakistan Champions.
Also read: Sunil Gavaskar told India’s biggest threat, which can spoil the hopes of T20 World Cup 2026.
He posted for ABD: “Unpopular/popular opinion. AB is still better than half the international players in the IPL. Maybe even more.”
Suryakumar Yadav vs AB de Villiers in numbers
De Villiers dominated across all formats with his 360-degree stroke play. In 228 ODIs, he scored 9,577 runs at an average of 53.5 and a strike rate of over 101, including 25 centuries and 53 fifties. In T20Is, he scored 1,672 runs in 78 matches at an impressive strike rate of 135.0.
His Test career included 114 matches, 8,765 runs at an average of 50.0 and 22 centuries. Known for innovative shots and dashing runs between the wickets, the legendary Proteas player also contributed with 172 ODI catches. In T20, he has 9424 runs to his name in 340 matches at an amazing strike rate of over 150.
Suryakumar Yadav, on the other hand, has 2959 runs in 102 T20Is at an average of 36.98 and an impressive strike rate of 165.03. He also has 773 runs in 37 ODIs and 8 runs in one Test. Talking about T20, the right-handed batsman has so far scored 9146 runs in 349 matches at an excellent average of 35.31 and strike rate of 152.99.
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