Cape Town — Dewald Brevis was destined for greatness ever since he picked up a cricket bat before he could hardly walk.
Due to his resemblance to Proteas and Indian Premier League legend AB de Villiers, the nickname “Baby AB” gained traction fast.
But at just 19 years old, and yet to even play for South Africa at the senior level, Brevis deserves his own moniker, at least according to SA comedian Joey Rasdien.
“Let’s scrap this ‘Baby’ nonsense, this is the new millennial ‘DB’, Dewald Brevis, that’s your name!” Rasdien said at the recent SA20 launch.
‘DB’ has, of course, captured the attention of cricket followers globally in a very short space of time with his record-breaking feats.
The former Afrikaans Hoërskool (Affies) pupil blazed through the ICC Under-19 World Cup for the SA U19 team in the Caribbean last year, where he surpassed India’s Shikhar Dhawan’s record for the most runs at the tournament.
This set in motion a string of events that has seen Brevis become a much-sought after signature for T20 franchise teams around the world, including the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
The youngster has thus far lived up to his billing and recently returned home to rubber-stamp his immense potential with a record-breaking 162 off just 57 balls, which included 13 sixes and 13 fours, for the Titans in Cricket SA’s T20 Challenge.
It is such feats that have MI Cape Town followers salivating at the prospect of Brevis turning on the magic at Newlands in the coming SA20, but nobody is more excited than the teenager himself for the tournament’s opening game on January 10 against the Paarl Royals.
“It’s a dream come true. It has always been my dream to represent Mumbai Indians, and now MI Cape Town, and to be able to play on the big stage because the crowds are massive, and I really enjoy it,” Brevis said.
“I think this tournament is going to be amazing. All these players coming to South Africa, the cricket is going to be very strong. It is going to be very competitive. People must be ready, because there is going to be lots of fireworks, lots of boundaries, lots of wickets.”
Despite cricket’s entire stratosphere being virtually his oyster, Brevis remains humble and values the prospect of being able to tap into the intellectual capacity of senior internationals such as Rassie van der Dussen, Liam Livingstone, Kagiso Rabada, Jofra Archer and Rashid Khan.
“It’s absolutely amazing!” Brevis said. “Who better to pick their brains, and get advice from? I can’t wait to share a dressing room and a field with them.”
IOL Sport