South African batsman AB de Villiers has heaped praise on Virat Kohli saying it was a great experience to play alongside the Indian Test team captain.
Kohli and de Villiers, who have been sharing the dressing room at the Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore, have shown a lot of mutual admiration despite being in the race to reach the top of the batting charts.
Since joining forces in the 2011 edition of the cash-rich league, they have displayed sparkling chemistry both on and off the field.
Speaking to the Times of India, after the release of his autobiography, AB, de Villiers revealed he had no competition with his RCB teammates Kohli and West Indies opener Chris Gayle.
"Virat Kohli is my favourite cricketer. Virat and Chris are great players who have become great friends, and it's been a great experience to play alongside them. Many people may be surprised that we get along so well, and there is absolutely no rivalry between us. We all pull for the team," he said.
De Villiers did not forget to mention about his RCB skipper in his autobiography. "For Virat, the bat was a surgeon's knife, and he so often proved himself uniquely skilled at placing the ball in the gaps," the South African wrote as quoted by Press Trust of India.
Kohli was in sublime form during the 2016 season of IPL. The Indian batsman smashed 973 runs at an average of 81.08, which was also the highest score in a single season of the league. Kohli, who did have a century in the shortest format of the game before the start of the season, scored four centuries and lead his side to the final of the league. De Villiers also played a crucial role in his team's campaign scoring 687 runs at 52.84 and emerged as the third highest scorer in the season.
Kohli had acknowledged de Villiers is the best in the business. When the Proteas batsman hit an unbeaten 79 to help his side thump table-toppers Gujarat Lions in the Qualifier, Kohli reiterated saying the crucial knock would settle the debate on who among the two was the best. Chasing a 159-run target, RCB were reeling at 68 for six but de Villiers single-handedly powered his side into the final.
An elated Kohli had said: "Unbelievable, can't believe I'm the winning captain. That should end a lot of debates as to who is the best going around. No question about it."
