Dewald Brevis is one of the most anticipated South African cricketers coming up. But his performances have been inconsistent over the years. There have been innings where he shook the opposition with his power-hitting, and there have also been knocks where, under pressure, he opted to play questionable shots, which put his side under more pressure.

Former South African batting legend AB de Villiers said that he is still in his 20s and his best is yet to come.

“I work a little bit with him (Dewald Brevis) in my off time. He’s still young, guys. I think a lot of people look at him like he’s almost past his best. He’s still early 20s. There’s a lot of cricket left for that young man.”

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Referring to his career, De Villiers said he himself matured around the age of 30.

“I told him, imagine you’re 30 years old, between 28 and 32, that’s when I peaked. He’s still a long way off that. You just become more experienced, you start understanding your game better, and he’s nowhere near that yet, and people are already sort of going, ‘We’re getting a little bit tired of him. He’s inconsistent.’ I was incredibly inconsistent when I was younger. So, I always say Dewald Brevis because I’m waiting for that. I know what’s coming,” he added.

De Villiers urged that Brevis should bat higher in the order and that coaches should stop playing him down the order in white-ball cricket.

“I hope that the coaches stop fooling him around. Bat him in the top order, stop putting him at five, and then he opens, then he bats at six, then he opens again, then he bats at three. In my opinion, he needs to bat No. 3 in T20s, three in ODIs, and four in Test match cricket. Pick him, put him there, keep him there. He’s going to win you a lot of cricket games.”