IPL 2022: Who is Dewald Brevis, the South African prodigy who sparkled on MI debut?

The fans witnessed some spectacular show during the IPL 2022 clash between Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders. While KKR’s Pat Cummins stole away the limelight with his tremendous batting, MI batters too showed great mettle.

While Suryakumar Yadav notched up an individual fifty, Tilak Verma remained unbeaten at 38 off 27 and Kieron Pollard chipped in with a 5-ball 22*.

But there was a youngster as well who made his debut for Mumbai Indians, Dewald Brevis. The right-handed batter scored 29 in just 19 deliveries, which included two maximums and as many fours.

Who is Dewald Brevis?

Dewald Brevis captured the limelight during the U19 World Cup where he amassed 506 runs in six matches for South Africa in the competition. He went on to score two centuries and three fifties.

Brevis who has also been given the nickname ‘Baby AB’ broke Shikhar Dhawan’s record for the highest number of runs in a single edition. Dhawan scored 505 runs in 2004.

Following his stupendous tournament with the bat, Brevis was also adjudged Player of the Tournament following the ICC U19 World Cup in West Indies.

Riding on a spectacular run in the U19 World Cup, the youngster bagged a good amount of money in IPL 2022 mega auction after he was purchased by Mumbai Indians for Rs. 3 crores.

The AB & AB 2.0 bond

There are some stories that just make you stay glued to your TV sets or maybe a write-up. Well, Brevis has one for all of us. From asking for a picture together with AB de Villiers at a restaurant to discussing the game with him, Brevis is certainly on the right track.

“AB (de Villiers) came to our school. Schalk Engelbrecht (the 2021 South Africa schools captain), and I just ran to the room because we wanted to be near AB. We sat and listened to the most amazing stories and afterward we walked out with AB. I took a chance and asked him for his number and he gave it to me,” he said according to an ESPNCricinfo report.

“During lockdown, I contacted him and I asked him for some advice and he always made time to reply to me,” Brevis added. “I like the way he explains cricket. He keeps it simple.”