Abraham Benjamin de Villiers debuted for South Africa in 2004 towards England. Alongside him was one other younger debutant who additionally went on to make a big contribution to South Africa and world cricket – Dale Steyn.
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In 2008 at Ahmedabad, de Villiers tore the Indian bowling aside to attain 217, his first double century in Check cricket. This was after India had been bowled out for 76 within the morning session on day one.
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AB de Villiers was one in all South Africa’s deadliest gamers in limited-overs codecs. In 228 ODIs he scored 9577 runs at a median of over 53 and a strike fee of 101 runs per 100 balls. In T20Is, he scored 1672 runs in 78 video games.
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He was the winner of LG ICC ‘ODI Participant of the Yr’ award in 2010
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AB de Villiers achieved his highest Check rating of 278* towards Pakistan at Abu Dhabi in 2010. He batted for over 600 minutes. Total, he scored 22 centuries in 114 Assessments.
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In a single match, de Villiers shattered the world file for the quickest ODI fifty (16 balls) and the quickest ODI century (31 balls) towards West Indies in Johannesburg. His 16 sixes equaled the file set by Rohit Sharma. De Villiers completed with 149 off simply 44 balls.
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de Villiers captained South Africa in all three codecs at totally different instances in his profession. His Check captaincy was restricted to simply three video games. He led his crew in 103 ODIs and 18 T20s.
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Maybe his greatest disappointment as captain was not with the ability to lead South Africa to a world limited-overs title. Within the 2015 World Cup, South Africa made it to the ultimate 4, however fell quick in a nailbiting semifinal.
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de Villiers was additionally a reliable wicketkeeper and was South Africa’s most well-liked alternative following Mark Boucher’s retirement. He took on a twin position until Quinton de Kock established himself within the Check squad.
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The 360 diploma man – why was de Villiers one of the crucial wanted gamers on the earth? He had all photographs within the guide, from the traditional, to the outrageous. Ramp photographs, reverse sweeps, swap hits, Dilscoops – you title it. AB was a grasp at visualization and execution.
Photograph: BHAGYA PRAKASH
de Villiers constructed an enormous fan following in India due to his 11-year stint with Royal Challangers Bangalore, the place he showcased a few of his finest batting. He additionally cast a lethal partnership and robust bond with captain Virat Kohli. Very like his South Africa expertise although, de Villiers by no means obtained to expertise an IPL title win.
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de Villiers performed his last worldwide match in 2018, throughout the Check sequence towards Australia. He performed an vital half in South Africa successful that sequence, scoring 126 at Port Elizabeth. He continued taking part in franchise cricket, having retired from worldwide cricket later that 12 months.
Photograph: Reuters