Sachin Tendulkar vs Virat Kohli: It has been almost 13 years since Sachin Tendulkar last played a Test match for India; however, he still remains the standard for great batters in the format.
But AB de Villiers has picked Royal Challengers Bengauru teammate Virat Kohli as a superior batter in the longest format. Comparing the two Indian batters, the former South African batter said, ‘Kohli was better than Tendulkar on bouncy and seaming pitches’.
Sachin Tendulkar vs Virat Kohli: AB de Villiers Makes His Pick
With close to 16,000 runs, Sachin Tendulkar sits at the top of the rankings for the most runs scored in Test cricket. The former Indian batter is currently being chased by Joe Root. Meanwhile, Virat Kohli, who retired from the longest format in 2025, ended up missing out on the elusive 10,000-run mark in the format. While holding the record for the most centuries in ODIs, Kohli falls short of Tendulkar’s 51 in red-ball cricket. However, for de Villiers, these numbers do not play a big role.
“I think of someone like Sachin Tendulkar way back, who started that trend for India. Yet, he wasn’t as strong as someone like Virat Kohli, who was even better. But Sachin was the first guy to show that as a subcontinent batter, you can do well in bouncy and seaming conditions. Virat took that forward and raised the bar, de Villiers said while comparing the two batters.
Sachin Tendulkar or Virat Kohli: Who is Better in Tests?
A look at the numbers shows Sachin Tendulkar is unarguably the better batter in Test cricket when compared to Virat Kohli. Playing 200 matches, Tendulkar scored 15,921 runs at an average of 53.78. Meanwhile, could muster up 9,230 runs in 123 games, averaging 46.85.
Bouncy pitches and seaming wickets are often presented in Australia and South Africa. In the two countries, Sachin Tendulkar played 35 games and scored 2,970 runs at an average of 50.33. Meanwhile, Virat Kohli scored 2,433 runs from 27 games at an average of 47.7. While the difference in the quality of bowlers faced could be argued, the stats show that Tendulkar was a superior batter while playing in an unarguably weaker side.
AB de Villiers Has More Expectations From KL Rahul
AB de Villiers further claimed that he has expected more from KL Rahul with respect to his modest Test average away from home. He believes that this is an area Rahul needs to improve on.
“KL is a guy with a sound technique and is a big asset in that Indian lineup. But he averages only 34 away from home. So you’ll expect more and that is one area where he has to work on. He has to get bigger scores once he gets in and not just get a 100 but make it a 180 because that first-ball duck and getting out to the newish ball is always around the corner. So for him, the name of the game will be to make the big scores even bigger,” he said.