New Delhi: Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers on Tuesday decided not to come out of retirement ahead of their tour to West Indies. Cricket South Africa confirmed the news with a tweet, thereafter going on to announce their squad for the tour of West Indies as well as Ireland.
“Discussions with AB de Villiers have concluded with the batsman deciding once and for all, that HIS RETIREMENT WILL REMAIN FINAL,” tweeted Cricket South Africa.
As soon as the news broke, fans took to Twitter to express their disappointment. Some were of the opinion that Cricket South Africa took the right call by not naming him in the squad. There were mixed reactions while some even going on to suggest AB can come to India and play with Virat Kohli.
Good decision by @OfficialCSA . A selfish player who prefer money and leagues he should not allowed to play for his country. Please also ban all other players who recently go for IPL instead of playing with national team.
— Asad Rehman (@faranianasad) May 18, 2021
Sa needs a leader, they are in mud
— Shreya/ getting ratioed ✌️ (@headingley_135) May 18, 2021
Bavuma even don’t deserve place in playing 11 specially in t20i
— Vishal (@Fanpointofviews) May 18, 2021
AB can come to India and play with Virat.🙂
But where would he fit in the playing 11..??🙄🤔— ET (@JMsaad99) May 18, 2021
South Africa cricket board should have asked kohli to speak to ABD. pic.twitter.com/8PPPbQlSUd
— Heerahee (@Heerahee) May 18, 2021
We will Miss You Legend @ABdeVilliers17 😭🙏💔
A Bad News to Entire World Cricket 😔
Thank you For Entertained us Though ur Phenomenal Batting 🏏👏👍🙏 pic.twitter.com/wYEmI6gQPT
— Lokesh_AA😘 (@Lokesh_Bunnyfan) May 18, 2021
— Shivani (@meme_ki_diwani) May 18, 2021
Heartbreaking 💔 But respecting your decision AB..it might have come out of current crisis in SA CRICKET!! Anyhow hope to see u play more T20 cricket and gifting us memories..#ABD #ABDeVilliers @ABdeVilliers17 🐐 #MASTER #Cricket pic.twitter.com/9NhYzt3zO6
— Devanayagam (@Devanayagam) May 18, 2021
“If I can slot in, it will be fantastic,” earlier de Villiers had said after the match-winning knock against Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL 2021.
“I am absolutely interested, with regards to my form, my fitness, we have to get the best 15 together, we will plan accordingly. I am speaking with Boucher towards the end of IPL,” he added.
“I did chat to him before he went to the IPL,” Mark Boucher had said regarding AB’s return.
“The conversation is still very much open. AB being the person he is, he wanted to perform very well at the IPL, to prove to himself and everyone else that he is still a very key figure in world cricket and could dominate at that level,” Boucher had said.
“The Caribbean is well-known for its low and slow wickets and we have ensured that we have chosen the personnel needed for every eventuality on this very important excursion. While there aren’t any (ICC World Test Championship) points to play for, it is still of vital importance for South Africa to produce winning results through a steadily growing and high-performing cricket pipeline,” Victor Mpitsang, CSA’s Convenor of Selectors, said in a statement as per a report in Cricbuzz.
“The historic tour to Ireland is crucial for points towards our qualification for the 2023 Cricket World Cup and preparation for the T20 World Cup later this year. This is the start of our road to these trophies and every tour will see us field our absolute best sides,” he added.
South Africa are set to play a two-match Test series against West Indies starting on June 10 at St Lucia followed by five-match T20I series in Grenada. Soon after, the Proteas will fly to Ireland to play 3 ODIs and 3 T20s.