AB de Villiers announced his retirement from all format of the game. De Villiers made the announcement today which marks an end to an incredible career that spanned more than 18 years. Having made his international debut in 2004, AB de Villiers represented South Africa in 114 Tests, 228 ODIs and 78 T20Is. Across formats, he amassed 20014 runs, averaging more than 50 in both Tests and ODIs. He retired from international cricket in May 2018. Here is official tweet from ABD:
It has been an incredible journey, but I have decided to retire from all cricket.
Ever since the back yard matches with my older brothers, I have played the game with pure enjoyment and unbridled enthusiasm. Now, at the age of 37, that flame no longer burns so brightly. pic.twitter.com/W1Z41wFeli
— AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) November 19, 2021
Under the leadership of de Villiers, South Africa made it to the semi-finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 in Australia but lost in a thriller to New Zealand. Amongst the several personal accolades achieved throughout his illustrious career, de Villiers holds the joint record for the most ICC Men’s ODI Player of the Year awards won. He won it thrice in years 2010, 2014, 2015 and is now tied with Virat Kohli.
In the ICC Awards of the Decade last year, he was nominated for Sir Garfield Sobers Award for Male Cricketer of the Decade as well as the Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Decade. More recently, he was part of Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2021 Indian Premier League. He had a successful T20 career, playing 340 matches and scoring 9424 runs at a strike-rate of 150.13. This ends his association with the Royal Challengers Bangalore, which lasted for 10 seasons since joining the team in 2011. Post from RCB:
Announcement 🔊 @ABdeVilliers17 retires from all cricket
End of an era! 😔 There’s nobody like you, AB. We’ll miss you dearly at RCB. ❤️ For all that you’ve done and given to the team, to the fans, and to cricket lovers in general, #ThankYouAB 🙏🏼 Happy retirement, legend! pic.twitter.com/JivSPTVn88
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) November 19, 2021
De Villiers ends his career with 4491 runs in 156 matches for RCB in the IPL, finishing as the second highest run-getter for the team behind Virat Kohli. De Villiers, who represented Delhi Daredevils before joining RCB, has finished his IPL career as the sixth highest run-getter with 5162 runs in 184 matches, with a best of 133* against Mumbai Indians in 2015.
Apart from his international T20 appearances and playing for RCB and Delhi in the IPL, De Villiers has also represented Barbados Tridents, Brisbane Heat, Lahore Qalandars, Middlesex, Rangpur Riders, South Africans, Titans and Tshwane Spartans in T20 cricket. He has ended his T20 career with a total of 9424 runs in 340 matches, with 59 fifties and 4 hundreds. De Villiers’s first-class career lasted for 141 matches in which he scored 10689 runs while he amassed 11123 runs in 263 List A games.
“I have had a long and fruitful time playing for RCB. Eleven years have just whizzed by and leaving the boys is extremely bittersweet. Of course, arriving at this decision took a lot of time, but after a lot of contemplation, I’ve decided to hang up my boots and spend quality time with my family,” said De Villiers in a statement.
“I would like to thank the RCB management, my friend Virat Kohli, teammates, coaches, support staff, fans, and the entire RCB family for showing faith and supporting me all through these years. It has been a memorable journey with RCB. Have so many memories on the personal front to cherish for the lifetime. RCB will always be very close to me and my family and will continue to support this amazing team. I am a RCBian forever.”
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