South African cricketer AB de Villiers, known to be one of contemporary cricket's greatest batsmen, announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on November 19, 2021.
The 37-year-old announced his decision on Twitter with a tweet, "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."
He thanked each and every teammate and staff member and expressed gratitude for the immense support he received in both South Africa and India and everywhere else he played. "I would like to thank every teammate, every opponent, every coach, every physio and every staff member who has travelled the same path, and I am humbled by the support I have received in South Africa, in India, wherever I have played," he said.
I would like to thank every teammate, every opponent, every coach, every physio and every staff member who has travelled the same path, and I am humbled by the support I have received in South Africa, in India, wherever I have played
— AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) November 19, 2021
In his almost 17-year-long career, he has effectively dominated all forms of the game with his 360 degree batting. He has played 114 Tests, 228 ODIs and 78 T20Is for South Africa.
AB De Villiers retires from IPL as wellThe star batsman had announced his retirement from international cricket earlier on May 23, 2018. While he had then retired from playing for the South African national team, he had continued to play for his IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore. He was in fact a key member of the IPL team and his exemplary performance had raised hopes that he would come out international retirement and play for his national team. However, his latest announcement means that he will be retiring from his IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore as well. He has featured in a total of 184 IPL matches and featured in 340 T20 games for different teams across the country. De Villiers recorded a special video message for RCB saying, "I’m going to be an RCBian for life. Every single person in the RCB set-up has become family to me. People come & go, but the spirit & the love we have for each other at RCB will always remain. I’ve become half Indian now & I’m proud of that."
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AB De Villiers career highlights
• Overall, De Villiers has played a total of 114 Test matches, 228 ODIs and 78 T20 Internationals.
• He signed off his career with a staggering 20,014 international runs including 8765 in Tests, 9577 in ODIs and 1672 in T20Is and a batting average of over 50 in both Tests and ODIs.
• De Villiers is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time. He holds many batting records, including the world's fastest ODI 50, 100 and 150, the fastest Test century by a South African and the fastest T20I 50 by a South African.
• He also holds the record for most Test innings without registering a duck (78).
• He was also a three-time ICC ODI player of the year, winning the award in 2010, 2014 and 2015.
AB De Villiers Batting Stats
Competition | Test | ODI | T20I |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matches | 114 | 228 | 78 |
| Runs scored | 8,765 | 9,577 | 1,672 |
| Batting average | 50.66 | 53.50 | 26.14 |
| 100s/50s | 22/46 | 25/53 | 0/10 |
| Top score | 278* | 176 | 79* |
AB De Villiers Bowling Stats
Competition | Test | ODI | T20I |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balls bowled | 204 | 192 | – |
| Wickets | 2 | 7 | – |
| Best bowling | 2/22 | 2/15 | – |
| Catches/stumpings | 222/5 | 176/5 | 65/7 |
About AB de Villiers
• AB de Villiers began his international career as a wicket-keeper/batsman. He was an occasional wicketkeeper until he handed the gloves to debutant Quinton de Kock in 2015.
• He batted at various positions in the batting order but predominantly in the middle-order.
• Noted as one of the most innovative batsmen in the modern game, De Villiers was known for his many unorthodox shots behind the wicket-keeper and slips, which earned him the nickname Mr. 360.
• He made his international debut in a Test match against England in 2004 and played his first ODI in early 2005. He made his debut in Twenty20 International cricket in 2006.
• He succeeded Graeme Smith after the 2011 Cricket World Cup for the ODI captaincy and Hashim Amla after the second test of England in South Africa series for the Test captaincy.
• He stepped down from test captaincy in December 2016 due to an elbow injury which kept him out of the team for a long period.
• However, with defeats in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy and England series, he stepped down from limited over captaincy as well.
• He played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League.
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