India coach Ravi Shastri on Tuesday urged South African batsman A.B. de Villiers to come out of international retirement. The 36-year-old, who ended his international career two years ago, smashed six 6s in a 33-ball blitz in Sharjah on Monday that set up a big win for Royal Challengers Bangalore over the Knight Riders.
‘Super human’
Accolades poured in for the former Proteas captain, with RCB skipper Virat Kohli calling his teammate “super-human”. “What one saw last night was unreal,” Shastri wrote on Twitter.
In a direct plea to de Villiers, Shastri added: “The game in these trying times or otherwise needs you back in the international arena and out of retirement. The game will be better off.”
High strike rate
His IPL form — three half-centuries and a strike rate of over 185 in seven games — has added to talk of a comeback.
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