Too much risk in Virat Kohli opening at T20 World Cup: AB de Villiers

NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli has enjoyed great success as an opener in the IPL, including the current season, but his close friend AB de Villiers believes the Indian superstar is best suited to bat at number three in the upcoming T20 World Cup in the USA and Caribbean.

Kohli has amassed 708 runs for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) this season, boasting a strike rate over 150, effectively silencing critics who questioned his intent against spinners in the middle overs earlier in the tournament.

Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal form a potent right-left opening combination. However, to accommodate Suryakumar Yadav at number three, Kohli might be asked to open, potentially at Jaiswal's expense, for the ICC event beginning June 1.

However, De Villiers feels the former India captain opening is not a good idea.

"I feel he's a number three batsman and that's where he's most impactful. He's almost like the captain of the batting team everywhere he goes. He keeps the calmness and the composure within the batting unit," the South African great told PTI in a select media interaction arranged by JioCinema on Wednesday.

"I know Virat himself really enjoys opening, which is great. You've got to respect that from a man who's played the game for many years. He understands his game really well and he understands what he wants out of the game as well.

"But if I was playing a TV game, Xbox, he would come in at number three in my team. I feel there's too much risk in those first couple of overs to go and ask Virat to take the game on, to hit the ball in the air. All I want him to do is to bat between overs 4 and 16-17, somewhere there.

"I feel that's where he's best in the world by a country mile and that's where he's most impactful," he asserted.

(With PTI inputs)