AB de Villiers retires – Former South African batter and one of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) mainstay Ab de Villiers announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on Friday. De Villiers took to social media to break the news, indicating that he won’t be featuring for RCB in the upcoming IPL edition. Reacting to the same RCB’s former skipper and de Villiers’ teammate Virat Kohli termed AB de Villiers as the most “inspirational” person he has met in his life. Follow InsideSport.in for more sports news and all the latest updates.
AB de Villiers retires: Virat Kohli relives ABD bromance, says ‘I’ll always be your number 1 fan’
AB de Villiers announced his retirement from all forms of cricket in an official statement on social media on Friday. The former South African captain wrote, “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.”
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Reacting to the news, his RCB teammate Virat Kohli said the bond between the two cricketers is “beyond the game and will always be.”
“To the best player of our times and the most inspirational person I’ve met, you can be very proud of what you’ve done and what you’ve given to RCB my brother. Our bond is beyond the game and will always be,” Kohli tweeted.
“This hurts my heart but I know you’ve made the best decision for yourself and your family like you’ve always done. I love you,” he added.
This hurts my heart but I know you've made the best decision for yourself and your family like you've always done. 💔I love you 💔 @ABdeVilliers17
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) November 19, 2021
Kohli also shared a heartfelt note on his Instagram account saying he will always be AB de Villiers’ number 1 fan. Check out –
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Kohli & ABD Bromance: Virat Kohli and Ab de Villiers have won numerous matches for Royal Challengers Bangalore. The duo shares the record for the two highest partnerships recorded in IPL.
- Kohli AB de Villiers is the only duo in IPL history who have scored over 3000 runs in partnerships.
- They put on an unbeaten 215-run stand against Mumbai Indians in 2015 and 229 runs for the second wicket against Gujarat Lions in 2016
- Kohli & Virat also share the record for 10 century stands in the IPL which is the most by any player in the history of the tournament. They achieved the feat during IPL 2020 in the game against Kolkata Knight Riders
- The duo reached the final twice – in IPL 2011 & IPL 2016 but failed to lay their hands on the coveted trophy
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Popularly known as Mr 360 De Villiers began his RCB career in 2011 and played 10 seasons for the franchise, being a crucial part of 5 playoff runs in his time.
De Villiers has played 156 matches for RCB and scored 4,491 runs. He is the second all-time leading run-scorer behind Kohli and holds the second and third-highest individual run total in RCB history with 133* against Mumbai Indians (in 2015) and 129* against Gujarat Lions (in 2016).
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