Exclusive: Jonty Rhodes Praises Dewald Brevis for Overcoming ‘Baby AB’ Label

Proteas legend Jonty Rhodes is relieved that Proteas batter Dewald Brevis is finally thriving on the international stage and that he seems to have moved on from the pressure that came with the 'Baby AB' tag that overshadowed his introduction to professional cricket.

Moving past the Baby AB tag

From the moment the world was introduced to South African star Dewald Brevis in the 2022 ICC Men's Under-19 World Cup, the 'Baby AB' tag came to life for the first time.

Due to his attacking nature with bat in hand, his wide variety of shots, and skills, the 'Baby AB' tag was used to liken Brevis to former Proteas captain AB de Villiers.

During the 2022 ICC Men's Under-19 World Cup, Brevis set a new Under-19 World Cup record, smashing over 500 runs in one edition. The youngster went on to finish that tournament with two centuries, two half-centuries and had an average of 84.33.

Brevis’ record-breaking performance is also accompanied by his bowling stats as a reliable leg-break bowler, scoring 65 and 2/43 against India, 104 and 2/18 against Uganda, 96 and 0/13 against Ireland, 97 and 2/40 against England, 6 and 1/52 against Sri Lanka, and 138 and 0/34 in the seventh-place play-off match against Bangladesh.

His record-breaking tournament made the whole world take note of his talents, and soon after, contract offers came in, with the Indian Premier League's (IPL) Mumbai Indians signing the youngster in the same year.

Despite the youngster showing promising signs, his form took a concerning decline in the IPL, leading to the Mumbai Indians releasing him after the 2024 edition of the IPL.

His struggles were partly because of the pressure that came with being compared with a legendary batter, AB de Villiers.

The pressure got to a point where the youngster did not take his opportunity when he was given an international cap for the first time under Rob Walter, as Brevis only managed scores of 5 and 0.

Proteas legend and now Lions Men's and Women's High Performance and fielding coach, Jonty Rhodes, told SportsBoom.co.za that Brevis was unfairly likened to De Villiers. Rhodes believes that Brevis had to first figure out how to deal with the tag.

Rhodes believes that Brevis has now moved on from the tag, a feat that is behind his record-breaking 125 not out against Australia, as he finished as the leading run-scorer in the recently concluded T20I series down under.

"
I've never really worked with him in a team. So, I've always played against him in the IPL setup. And I think as somebody who's, you know, you watch a player, he firstly was baby AB. And that was a massive issue because he's coming in now to take over from AB de Villiers, which is like impossible. There's only one AB de Villiers," Rhodes told SportsBoom.co.za.

"It was interesting hearing Shukri talking about, he just says, entertain me because you know what the guy can do. I mean, you really do know what the guy is about, but entertain me for a longer period, and that's exactly what it is."

"And that generally is just about shot selection. You know, when he plays the right shot to the correct ball, his technique is so good. He doesn't try and overhit it. He keeps his head down. He does that. Stay watching. When he hits the ball, he's still watching where the ball was, which is amazing."

"Most of us try and force it for six. We lose our shape. So I think it's more a key of just backing himself, and maybe it took a while for him to find that he doesn't have to worry about the AB chatter. It's just be. I mean, because that thing is, when it goes, what an incredible knock."

ODI debut on the horizon

With the 22-year-old having received his maiden Test cap two months ago, he is in line to earn his One Day International cap at Cazaly's Stadium in Cairns on Tuesday when South Africa and Australia meet for the first match of the three-match series.

Brevis will play his match under the leadership of Temba Bavuma, who returns to action for the first time since winning the ICC World Test Championship final at Lord's in June.