New Delhi . Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli are two names of Indian cricket who are often compared. Both of them took Indian batting to new heights in different eras and proved their ability in the difficult cricketing conditions of the world. Now former South African captain AB de Villiers has expressed his opinion about the success of both the legends in foreign conditions. After De Villiers' comment, the debate has once again intensified as to who was the better batsman between Sachin and Virat.

Instead of belittling Sachin Tendulkar's achievements, De Villiers said that Sachin had paved a path for Indian batsmen. According to him, Sachin was one of the first Indian batsmen who instilled the belief that a batsman coming from the subcontinent could be successful even in the bounce and seam conditions of fast bowlers. However, De Villiers believes that Virat Kohli took this legacy forward and took it to a different level.

The most talked about part of De Villiers' talk was that he described Virat Kohli as stronger than Sachin in foreign conditions. According to his opinion, Kohli further boosted the confidence of Indian batting abroad and made a significant contribution in making Team India a strong Test team on foreign grounds. This statement has rekindled the old debate of Sachin vs Virat in social media and cricket world.

However, if we look at the data, the picture appears slightly different. Sachin Tendulkar scored 15,921 runs in 200 Test matches and remains the highest run-scorer in Test cricket. A large part of his Test career was also successful on foreign grounds. According to statistics, Sachin played 63 Tests in South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia and scored 5,387 runs at an average of 51.30. During this period he scored 17 centuries and 23 half-centuries.

Whereas Virat Kohli scored 9,230 runs in 123 test matches. He has 4,774 runs in his name in 66 Tests played outside India. In four major foreign countries, South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia, Kohli scored 3,661 runs at an average of 42.08 in 46 Test matches. He had 12 centuries and 14 half-centuries to his name in these conditions. That is, in total overseas statistics, Sachin seems to have a strong upper hand, while De Villiers gave more importance to Kohli's influence and the change in the mentality of the Indian team during his era.

De Villiers also mentioned the current Indian batsmen and said that Sachin and Virat set an example for the next generation of players. He described batsmen like KL Rahul and Devdutt Padikkal as part of this tradition. However, he also pointed out scope for improvement on Rahul's overseas Test batting. According to de Villiers, Rahul's technique is excellent but his average is expected abroad. He advised that once Rahul gets settled at the crease, he should convert his innings into big scores and continue batting even after the century and try to make big scores like 150 to 180 runs.

Actually, the comparison between Sachin and Virat cannot be completely decided on the basis of statistics alone. Sachin established Indian cricket on the world stage at a time when Indian batsmen faced many challenges in foreign conditions. Taking the same foundation forward, Virat gave a new identity to the mentality of fitness, aggression and overseas victory. Therefore, instead of proving any one player as completely great, De Villiers' statement highlights the different aspects of both their legacies and their influence. This is why the Sachin vs Virat debate is probably never going to end among cricket fans.