AB de Villiers

At 40 years old, AB de Villiers has this physical status:

Abraham Benjamin de Villiers (born 17 February 1984), also known as AB de Villiers, has captained the South African cricket team in all three styles.

During his 15-year international career, he was named ICC Player of the Year three times.

Wisden ranked him as the second best ODI innings of the decade against West Indies in 2015.

He competed for Titans in South African domestic cricket and the Delhi Daredevils & Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League. (IPL)

He is an attacking batsman in restricted overs cricket.

In just 31 balls, he has the fastest ODI century to date.

He also has the fastest ODI 50,100 and 150. De Villiers began his international career as a wicket-keeper-batsman, but he has mostly played as a batsman.

He batted at various levels in the batting order, but mostly in the middle order.

Devilliers, nicknamed one of the most creative batsmen in the modern game, made his international debut in a Test match against England in 2004 and first participated in a One Day International (ODI) in early 2005.

In 2006, he made his Twenty20 International cricket debut.

In both Test and ODI cricket, he scored over 8,000 runs and has a batting average of over fifty in both Test and ODI cricket, but after a string of injuries, he resigned from Test captaincy.

He stepped down from captaining the national limited-overs teams in 2017 and announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket in May 2018.

Early life

Abraham Benjamin de Villiers was born in Warmbad, South Africa, on February 17th, 1984 (modern day Bela-Bela), and he was introduced by Paul B de Villiers and Millie de Villiers. Jan de Villiers and Wessels de Villiers, two elder brothers, are his brothers. He referred to his childhood years as "really relaxed life up there, where everybody knows everybody." He was educated at Afrikaanse Hool in Pretoria alongside teammate Faf du Plessis, who was and still is his good friend. He is a high school graduate. His father was a doctor who had played rugby in his youth, and he encouraged his son to play sports as a child.

Personal life

After five years of dating, Devilliers proposed to his wife, Danielle Swart, at the Taj Mahal in 2012. The couple married in Bela-Bela, South Africa, on March 30. They have two sons and one daughter.

He is a devout Christian, and he has said that his faith is vital to his life. He is both a natural guitarist and a singer. In 2010, he and his colleague and South African singer Ampie du Preez released Maak Jou Drome Waar. AB de Villiers, the autobiography, was published in September 2016. On Instagram, he is the most followed South African.

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Career

De Villiers, a right-handed batter who has played in Tests including 22 centuries and 46 fifties, has accumulated over 8,000 runs in Tests. Before being suspended for nought against Bangladesh in November 2008, he holds the record for most Test innings without registering a duck (78). With 278*, he also scored the second highest individual score by a South African batsman. He was an occasional wicketkeeper for South Africa until 2012, but after the retirement of regular Testkeeper Mark Boucher and under his own captaincy, he has started to keep wicket for the national team in Tests, ODIs, and T20Is. In 2015, Quinton de Kock, his debutant, renounced wicketkeeping and gave the gloves to debutant Quinton de Kock.

He holds the fastest 50 (16 balls), 100 (31 balls), and 150 (64 balls) of all time in One Day International Cricket, as well as the fastest 50 by a South African in T20Is. He has been named ICC ODI Player of the Year three times, winning the award in 2010 and 2015.

After the 2011 Cricket World Cup, he replaced Graeme Smith as captain of the national ODI team and became Test captain after the second Test of the home series against England in 2015/16. In December 2016, Test captaincy was forced to leave the team for a lengthy time due to an elbow injury.

International career

He made his Titanic debut in 2003/4 after a brief stint with the South African U19 team.

On December 16, 2004, he made his Test debut as a 20-year-old against England at Port Elizabeth. He made a good impression in the opening of the batting but was soon ordered out of the order for the second Test and also handed the wicket-keeping gloves. He made a match-saving half-century from number seven in this match. However, he was back on the top of the order for the final Test of the series.

Despite a good tour of the Caribbean where he scored 178 to help South Africa win a Test series win, his rapid development slowed on the tour of Australia in 2005. Despite playing Shane Warne and becoming the second-youngest and second-fastest South African to reach 1,000 Test runs after Graeme Pollock, he struggled and made just 152 runs in 6 innings.

Although he currently bats in the middle order, he has been used in a similar manner as Jonty Rhodes in ODIs, beginning with the wickets. Devilliers gave the selectors a warning by scoring his highest one-day rating of 92 not out, which included 12 fours and six from 98 balls against India in the 2006 winter series.

De Villiers sparked his reputation as a good fielder, as shown by a dive run-out of Simon Katich of Australia in 2006, and while still lying on his stomach facing away from the stumps, he struck the ball directly. People have also compared Jonty Rhodes to Jonty Rhodes, who was also one of the best fielders of his time. His fielding positions other than wicketkeeper include 1st and 2nd slips and cover.

Abduin was in good form in ODIs, scoring four 50s in the South Africa vs. India/Pakistan (2007) matches.

AB's form in the early stages of the tournament was weak, with three misses, including a duck against the Netherlands in a match where his team had broken three records for batting, but he tallied 92 against Australia in the first round.

In the Super 8 game against the West Indies on April 10, he scored 146 from just 130 balls, including 5 sixes and 12 fours, making him his second ODI century, 146 from just 130 balls, including 5 sixes and 12 fours. For the latter stages of his innings, he had to bat with a runner and found every shot uncomfortable due to a combination of cramps, heat exhaustion, and dehydration. His innings included a second wicket partnership with Jacques Kallis and a third wicket partnership with Herschelle Gibbs. De Villiers' wickets added to the total number of 356/4 from 50 overs.

His batting during the World Cup was uneventy, as he failed to score on four occasions, which in itself was a record.

De Villiers became the first South African to score a double century against India on April 4th, 2008, with a top score of 217.

In the second Test against England at Headingley Carnegie in Leeds in July 2008, De Villiers scored an obdurate 174, which resulted in a ten-wicket victory for South Africa. This was followed by a 97 at The Oval before he collapsed Monty Panesar for a boundary and was trapped on the fence.

De Villiers scored a match-winning century in Perth's first Test to help South Africa beat their second-highest-ever fourth innings target of 414 runs out of place with six wickets. This was South Africa's first Test victory in 15 years in Australia, and it seemed to go a long way to change world cricket's balance of control after over a decade of Australian dominance. Devilliers had four diving catches during the match, including one to dismiss Jason Krejza, a stunner at backward stage.

In the second Test of the final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, De Villiers only scored 11 runs, earning another low score. De Villiers scored a patient half-century in the second innings of that Test, though South Africa hardly achieved a draw against the Bodds.

He played as wicketkeeper in Adelaide's 4th ODI series after Boucher was ruled out. He then won the series with 6 fours and a six, and was named man of the match after scoring 82 not out of 85 balls with 6 fours and a six.

In the first Test of the Return series at the Wanderers Stadium, De Villiers provided the only resistance in the first innings against a bowling attack led by pace bowler Mitchell Johnson, who scored 104* off 185 balls with 9 fours and 1 six, while his colleagues all fell for under 50. In the second innings, he made only 3 off 7.

De Villiers was the third centurion of the innings in the third Test after centuries of Ashwell Prince and Jacques Kallis. He had a score of 163 out of 196 balls with 12 fours and 7 sixes. In addition, De Villiers, a bowling of McDonald, set the record for most sixes in a bowling match.

De Villiers played well in the first game of the ODI series, but he lost by only 2 runs in the first game. Nevertheless, he went on to make 36*, 80, 84, and 38, winning the Player of the Series at the conclusion of game 5.

He was suspended for the two-match Twenty20 series against Zimbabwe because Mark Boucher was hurt, as well as Heino Kuhn's wearing gloves. While Boucher was recovering, Devilliers returned for the ODI series and also took over the gloves. South Africa defeated the three match series 3–0, with Zimbabwe winning two centuries out of the three ODIs.

For the two Twenty20 matches, he faced Pakistan, where he kept wicket. He was out for a second-ball duck in the first game of a superb job by Shoaib Akhtar. He scored 11 runs in the second T20I series. He later played in the five-match ODI series, where South Africa was chasing 203 to win and scored 51 before being trapped and bowled by Saeed Ajmal. He scored 29 runs as he was bowled by Shahid Afridi in the second ODI; in the same match, flamboyant Abdul Razzaq played the best innings of his life to lift Pakistan to an amazing victory. He scored 19 goals in his third match before being stumped by Zulqarnain Haider. As the umpire had pressed the wrong button, it turned out to be a mistake. He missed out on a half-century in the fourth game, but at 49 when he gave his wicket to the fielder at point. South Africa defeated by 57 runs and the series 3–2 as his good form in the series continued when he scored 61 in the final ODI.

The ICC named him in the World Test XI in 2009 and 2010, and he was also named in the World ODI XI in 2010.

In the 2011 World Cup, AB de Villiers scored two centuries in a row. He became the first South African to score two centuries in a single World Cup and the fifth batsman after Mark Waugh, Saeed Anwar, Rahul Dravid, and Matthew Hayden to score two centuries in a single World Cup tournament. In another World Cup tournament, he became the 16th batsman to score two or more centuries. Abde Villiers' strike rate of 136.73 is the highest among South African batsmen who have scored centuries in World Cup matches. De Villiers is joint second in the South African team with the most match awards in World Cups for his third player of the match award in World Cups. Lance Klusener leads the list with five awards.

AB de Villiers, South Africa's new limited-overs captain, was announced on June 6, 2011, then South Africa coach Gary Kirsten announced that he would be South Africa's next limited-overs captain. "I'm really excited, but I'm also inexperienced." "I've learned a lot in the last seven years from an incredible captain," De Villiers, who had never captained a team at a first-class level. "It's a big responsibility, but there will be a new glance in the direction, which is positive."

Devilliers appeared in the home series against Australia and Sri Lanka in the 2011–12 South African summer. In South Africa's victory in the third and deciding Test of the season, he scored a century (160 not out) in the second century (160 not out). He was named Player of the Series after hitting 353 runs at an average of 117.66. He then led South Africa for his first series after being appointed captain of the One Day International team. South Africa defeated Sri Lanka by a 258-run victory in Paarl on January 11, 2012, in his first match as captain. It was also the highest margin of victory (by runs) in an ODI match involving two Test-playing teams. South Africa advanced to victory in the ODI series, with De Villiers named player of the series after scoring 329 runs at an average of 109.66, including a century (125 not out) in the fifth and final match in Johannesburg. After Mark Boucher announced his retirement from cricket after suffering eye injury from a bail the day before, Devilliers was given full-time wicketkeeping duties on July 10th.

De Villiers equalled Jack Russell's record of 11 dismissals in a match on February 4, 2013. In South Africa's second innings of the same match, he scored an unbeaten 103 off 117 balls. He became the first wicketkeeper to score a century and claim ten dismissals in a Test during his tenure.

De Villiers and Hashim Amla set the record for the highest third-wicket partnership in an ODI match on Thursday in Johannesburg, on 18 March. De Villiers had a total of 128 points, with 12 fours and three sixes scoring a total of 128.

De Villiers scored both the fastest fifty and the fastest century by a batsman in One Day International cricket, off 16 balls and 31 balls respectively, and then scoring 149 runs off 44 minutes against West Indies on 18 January 2015.

During the 2015 Cricket World Cup, Devilliers was one of the top scorers, with a record of 96.0 and a strike rate of 144.0 during the tournament.

In a match against the West Indies in Pool B on February 27, 2015, Devilliers scored 162 runs off 66 balls, bringing South Africa to their second-highest World Cup score (408), at Sydney Cricket Ground. With this achievement, he became the first one-day International record holder for the fastest 50, 100, and 150.

South Africa qualified for the semi-finals of the World Cup under De Villiers' captaincy, but lost to New Zealand in the match. With 482 runs, De Villiers finished as the third-highest run-scorer in the tournament, behind Martin Guptill and Kumar Sangakkara.

He was ranked No. 1 in the ICC batsmen rating in One day International cricket and number 3 in the ICC batsmen rating in Test cricket at the end of the season. The ICC selected him in the 'Team of the Tournament' for the 2015 World Cup.

The second Test match between England and South Africa ended in a draw on January 6, 2016. Hashim Amla resigned from the captaincy and de Villiers was named captain South Africa for the last two matches after the match was concluded.

De Villiers shot the fastest T20I fifty by a South African in just 21 balls on February 21, 2016. With 79 runs in 29 balls, he completed the innings and helped South Africa win by a clean sweep in the T20I series.

De Villiers ruled himself out of most of the Test matches on January 18 and then played in December 2017. Faf du Plessis had a viral infection the day before the Test match, putting him out of contention for the match. He was declared out of the team on the morning of the Test, with AB de Villiers replacing him as captain. While batting on day one, Quinton de Kock, South Africa's wicket-keeper, sustained a hamstring injury while batting. He took eight wickets in the game and the Test match was concluded in two days, with South Africa winning by an innings and 120 runs.

In 2018, De Villiers completed his Indian tour to South Africa. He said he had given up wicket-keeping because his back could no longer cope with the demand, and Faf du Plessis recommenced his duties as captain in both directions of the game.

He scored his 22nd Test century in the first Test match against Australia, scoring 126 not out of 146 balls in the first innings. His contribution helped the team win by six wickets.

Devilliers revealed on Twitter on May 23, 2018 that he had announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket. "I've had my turn, and to be honest, I am exhausted." He clarified and said that he will continue playing in T20 leagues for a few years after hearing that he had revealed that he would not retire from international cricket a few weeks ago. During the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, details of De Villiers' selection for the national team squad emerged after South Africa lost their first three matches in the tournament. Despite being prompted to do so by South Africa's coach Ottis Gibson earlier this year, he was not selected because he had not played any international cricket for his country leading up to the tournament.

It was rumoured that de Villiers was in negotiations to return to the South African T20I team for the 2020 ICC Men's T20 World Cup in January 2020. These rumors were confirmed by De Villiers, as well as South African director of cricket Graeme Smith and head coach Mark Boucher.

Devilliers was nominated for the Sir Garfield Sobers Award for ICC Male Cricketer of the Decade in November 2020, as well as the ODI Cricketer of the decade.

De Villiers has scored 22 Test and 25 ODI centuries. In 2005, he scored his first Test century against England and his first ODI century against the West Indies in 2007. In One-Day Internationals, he also holds the world record for the fastest 100 and 150.

Domestic and franchise career

De Villiers made his Northern debut in the 2003/04 Supersport Series, making his debut for the team. In the 2004/05 season, the team merged with Easterns to form the Titans team, which devilliers later played for. Because of his international commitments, he has only appeared on the side regularly since 2005, making a total of nine first-class, 20 List A, and 24 Twenty20 appearances for the team.

De Villiers has been one of the best batsmen in the Indian Premier League since entering the league in its inaugural season (IPL). He played for Delhi Daredevils in his debut in the league's fourth season, before moving to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for US$1.5 million. Three of his four Twenty20 centuries have played in the IPL, and he has appeared in over 150 games in the league. Following his release from international cricket, his future in the T20 franchise leagues was uncertain until he revealed in July 2018 that he intends to play in the IPL for "a few years." Abde Villiers' retirement from Indian Premier League (after14th edition of the Indian Premier League) He said he would return to the RCB for the 2023 season but not as a player.

De Villiers was inducted into the RCB Hall of Fame in May 2022 for his contributions to the team from 2011 to 2021.

Devilliers has played franchise T20 cricket for Barbados, Tshwane Spartans, Rangpur Riders, Middlesex, Brisbane Heat, and Lahore Qalandars in international leagues, other than the IPL. He has been chastised for his decision to play in franchise leagues rather than for his country.

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