South Africa haven't even come close to winning a single ICC tournament, so how AB can be seen at a top 3 ODI bat in beyond me. Kohli on the other hand has taken India very close on a few occasions already (at times singlehandedly, and of course won it in 2011 although it can't be attributed it to him)
AB has had a dozen opportunities, especially with the T20 world cup held every 2 years,
2007, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016...
Add in the Icc champions trophies and then the world cups too.. and he has had around a dozen opportunities, yet SA haven't even come CLOSE ever!
Kinda sound like im hating on AB but I'm just stating blatant facts. He is a freak batsman talent wise but has underperformed a lot. If I had to put money on a batsman to lead my side to glory in an icc tournament, I would always pick Kohli, Viv, Tendulkar, Dhoni ahead of him and even Ponting.