Former South African cricketer AB De Villiers opened up about the idea of playing one more season in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) legend admitted that he thought about that but he isn’t ready to play as he has made his call.
AB de Villiers has been one of the electrifying batters in the Indian Premier League. He started his career with Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) but since he joined Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2011, he changed the dynamics of the tournament and took his team to great heights.
From 2011 to the time he retired, AB de Villiers was part of RCB. He was the mainstay of the team’s batting lineup and every season came up with something interesting. Even after retiring, he’s still rated as one of the best overseas batters in the Indian Premier League.
AB de Villiers retired from IPL in November 2021. Two years after retiring, he’s still the second-highest run-getter for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) with 4491 runs to his name, only behind Virat Kohli, who has over 7000 runs.
AB De Villiers was asked about playing one more IPL season during an interaction on his YouTube channel. Replying to this, he said that he won’t play another edition as he has lost energy on the field. He elaborated:
“I have thought about it before, but it’s not going to happen. I have made my call, and as I have done throughout my career, I have always tried to be loyal to fans and teams. Secondly, when I make decisions, I was told from a very young age to be clear with what you decide and to stick to it. A lot of thinking went into it. The reason for that is in the last couple of seasons, I started finding myself losing a bit of energy on the field.”
He added that if he isn’t at his best then it’s time for him to move on. Talking about the same, AB de Villiers explained:
“There are a few reasons for that. I only played two or three months in a year. So, finding myself in the middle thinking I am not as good as I used to be, was a terrible thing. If I am not here to be the best in the world to change this game, it’s time for me to move on.”
I’ve not been in discussions with anyone whatsoever – AB de Villiers On joining RCB as support staff
Since the last few years, reports have claimed that RCB has approached AB de Villiers to join as a mentor for the next year. However, he made it clear that he hasn’t been contacted by the team and he’s also not ready yet. He explained:
“I’ve not been in discussions with anyone whatsoever. The interest is there. I am just not ready yet, and that’s from my heart. I am an RCB boy. I am not ready to join in any team environment yet. I’ve recently retired. Even though it’s quite a long time now, but it’s still recent in my mind.”
While there is no sign of RCB roping in AB de Villiers as a mentor, the franchise has included Andy Flower as the new head coach.
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