Exclusive - IPL auction 2022: 'Sachin Tendulkar a childhood hero, excited to play under Rohit Sharma' - Meet 18 year old IPL millionaire 'Baby AB' Dewald Brevis

Dewald Brevis has picked up, thanks to his swashbuckling batting style. The Johannesburg-born Brevis hogged the limelight with his power-packed batting show in the recently concluded ICC Under-19 World Cup 2022, which India won. The South African colts failed to make it to the knockouts, but the 18-year-old Brevis was the pick of the batsmen, taking the tournament by storm and signing off as the highest run-scorer, with 506 runs in 6 innings, at an average of 84.33.

He began the tournament with a fine 65 run knock vs India and then followed that up with knocks of 104 vs Uganda, 96 vs Ireland and 97 vs England. His only low score was a 6 vs Sri Lanka, but he signed off with a brilliant 138 vs Bangladesh. He also took 7 wickets with his more than useful off-spin, including 2 wickets vs India. Apart from his run-scoring spree, what caught the attention was his batting style that drew comparisons with South African great AB de Villiers. Now Baby AB will be seen in action in the IPL. The 18-year-old, who went on the auction table at a base price of Rs. 20 lakh, was bought by Mumbai Indians for Rs. 3 crore. Very clearly he was on the radar of the most successful IPL franchise and they went all out for him.

The youngster can't wait to play under Rohit Sharma who has guided Mumbai Indians to the IPL title five times (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020). Brevis spoke to TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview. PLAYING FOR THE MUMBAI INDIANS"It is a huge honour to be part of a franchise with an amazing record like Mumbai Indians. Me and my brother idolised so many players in the Mumbai family while we grew up. Mumbai Indians is a team that you always feel have a very good chance of winning the IPL and their past record shows