IPL 2014: Harshal Patel says RCB teammate AB de Villiers is a freak

AB de Villiers

After an amazing innings of 89 in 43 deliveries against Sunrisers Hyderabad, AB de Villiers has become the recipient of praises from plenty. Royal Challenger Bangalore’s pacer, Harshal Patel has termed his team-mate, de Villiers a ‘freak man’ who is tough to bowl at.

“What do I say! AB is a freak, man. What he can do on the cricket field, I don’t think anyone else can do that. I have no words to describe his brilliance,” Patel reportedly said to IPL’s official website.

“I think he is the most difficult batsman to bowl to. To good batsmen, if you bowl decent yorkers or good deliveries, you can get away. But to AB, if you bowl a perfect yorker, you can still go for six. You are never sure where to bowl to him. You can only bowl and hope for the best,” he added.

AB de Villiers is a batsman who makes sure that his partner on crease does not feel the pressure. “To be very honest, I was surprised myself that I was under no pressure. AB was batting so well at the other end, I just had to get a single and get him on strike. All that AB told me in that last over was to be balanced and watch the ball and look for a single and run hard. I was pretty confident that once AB got the strike, the game will be over,” Patel said.

When asked about his own performance, Patel said: “I was preparing myself all these days and working very hard. I was waiting for that one opportunity to play for RCB this season and I am glad I got my chance tonight. I tried to make the most of it,”

Young Patel expressed his gratitude towards bowling coach, Allan Donald: “I think more than any technical aspects we talk about the mental aspect and the attitude towards a game. We talk about how we approach the game on a given day and how to be aggressive on the field. The best thing about this group is that we all are aggressive on the field.”

“Allan Donald always emphasises on being aggressive on the field and asks us never to take a backward step even if we bowlers go for runs,” he added.

After de Villiers and Donald, Patel went on to praise his skipper, Virat Kohli.

“He (Kohli) is a very calm captain and doesn’t put you under pressure. He is very lenient on the field. If you want a field and you want to do something, he will let you do it. He is not someone who will tell you to do something else. He is a fantastic captain.” Patel signed off.