Best South African Batter in the IPL?
Who has had the best IPL career after AB de Villiers?
The innings is one of those that will never die. Royal Challengers Bangalore fans still speak about it, and YouTube is awash with highlights videos of varying quality, from mediocre to excellent, immortalising the knock.
De Villiers did his best work after the 10-over mark and didn’t expect to be at the crease in the powerplay, but Chris Gayle’s early dismissal meant that De Villiers walked in to bat in the fourth over.
Lasith Malinga didn't give De Villiers time to settle in. He greeted De Villiers with an outswinger, followed it up with a fuller delivery outside the off stump, and then sent down another one that moved away from the right-hander. The fourth ball De Villiers faced was a little further outside point, swinging away, and Malinga closed the over with a back-of-a-length outside off.
De Villiers didn’t score off any of the first five deliveries he faced. He faced 54 more deliveries, and from that lot, he dotted only five more times on his way to an unbeaten 133 off 59 balls. Irfan Pathan hilariously proclaimed, “I’m writing an official complaint as a bowler against AB de Villiers. All the bowers, please, join me. Legend.”
There is good impact, great impact, and then the highest, elite impact. De Villiers outdid all three. His impact of 56 was nuts. These are things that De Villiers did in his 14-year career in the IPL. He was, undoubtedly, South Africa’s greatest export to the IPL. In his 14-year-long career, De Villiers had only two average years, was an outstanding player for eight and was untouchable for four years.
He scored 500 in two seasons and had one 600-run season. When we convert his raw stats to true average and strike rate, he ends up with a true average of 16.65 and a true strike rate of 19.1. While these numbers are brilliant, they do not say much about his otherworldly impact of 950.
It would be crazy to compare any South African IPL players to him, De Villiers is one of the greatest batters in the history of the IPL. The question, then, is, who is the best after AB?
I couldn't use raw stats to answer that question because everyone doesn't bat in the same position or have the same entry point. So, I used the Good Areas Impact stats. These are stats derived from how much of an impact a batter had in a match.
For example, if a team batted first with a projected score of 180 and ended up on 200, we have an algorithm that measures how much that player's innings contributed to that upsurge? If they are batting second, how much did the player's innings move the win projection in the positive or negative? This puts everyone on an even footing.
If we merely go by Impact, then Heinrich Klaasen is the best after AB De Villiers. The middle-order batter is one of the most explosive batters on the circuit. As at 21 May 2025, Klaasen had an even split in boundaries, 74 fours and as many sixes. Few batters can claim such a six-hitting ability.
Klaasen has never had a 500-run or 600-run season because he comes in down the order, often in the 10th over. He is more impact than accumulation. Bowlers don’t like bowling to him, and his true strike rate of 22, coupled with a true average of 14, explains why. He has an impressive batting impact score of 268.32 in his five years of IPL cricket.
Klaasen compares favourably to other batters who come in around the 9.5-over mark.
CSK adopted a philosophy of signing overseas role players to support their local stars. Faf du Plessis has always been a team-first type of player, and he thrived in this role. However, the former South Africa captain has also always been big on self-improvement. He developed his game until he became one of the stars.
One of the most difficult things in professional sport is to maintain a great impact over long periods. Most players have an impactful five years and then peter out. Du Plessis’ trajectory had been different. At 40, he is no longer the player he was five years ago, however, he remains a plus player.
He has enjoyed two 600-run seasons, and one of them came recently. He has maintained a true average of nine and a true strike rate of 12 in his 13-year career. He has the third-highest impact score among South African batters to ever take part in the IPL. He boasts a healthy 251. He also compares well to the top batters who have a median entry point of 0.4.
CSK fans will always talk about Albie Morkel’s all-round abilities. At one point, Morkel was their leading wicket-taker. He took important wickets too. When he wasn’t doing that, he was blasting bowlers out of the park.
A favourite Morkel story among CSK fans was when he won them the game from nowhere. CSK was going at 9.05 runs an over against RCB, while the required rate was 21.5. Dhoni had just been dismissed, and the win projection was over 80% in RCB's favour.
Morkel strode in in the 18th over and scored four off the first delivery he faced. After that boundary, CSK needed four runs off each ball to win. Morkel launched the second one for a six and followed it up with a four. He creamed 14 off the next three balls, two sixes and a two. He was dismissed off the sixth ball he faced; however, by then, CSK was required to get 15 to win. Morkel moved the needle a long way.
He made a habit of doing things like that. That’s why CSK fans will always love him. Morkel was brilliant in eight of his nine seasons with CSK and finished his IPL career with a true average of seven and a true strike rate of four.
He played the Tim David role before the T20 universe caught up. His median entry point is 15.5 overs, and his impact is 179. He is way ahead of other batters with similar entry points.
The streets of Gujarat will always remember David Miller for their title-winning season. It was Miller or bust in a few matches, and Miller delivered in several of those encounters.
In one contest, the Titans were on 16/3 after four overs, with a less than 10% chance of winning when the left-hander arrived at the crease. Miller steered them to 55/4 after nine overs and an 11% chance of winning. He smashed a 28-ball half-century that doubled the Titans' chances of winning at the end of the 12th over. He struck 42 more runs off the next 23 balls to guide the Titans to victory.
The IPL had a reset, and Miller is now with the Lucknow Super Giants. It’s his fourth team. He spent eight years with the Punjab Kings and had a stint with the Rajasthan Royals. In that lot, Miller gave owners a big bang for their buck for seven years. He has maintained a true average of 14 and a true strike rate of two, and has an impact of 148.
Miller’s median entry point is the 10.4 over mark, and compares well with other players with similar entry points.
The stats put Klaasen ahead; however, they are not the be-all and end-all. They tell half the story. De Villiers’ greatness is buttressed by his longevity. A 14-year-long IPL career is the stuff of dreams. To do what De Villiers did over 14 years is nuts.
If we throw longevity into the mix, that eliminates Klaasen (who is one of the greats of the modern cohort) and leaves Du Plessis, Morkel and Miller. Both are in their 13th year, and one is clear: Faf du Plessis has had the best run after AB de Villiers.