AB de Villiers quashes retirement rumours
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AB de Villiers has dismissed rumours that he has decided to retire from Test cricket and said he wants to win global silverware for his country. The talismanic de Villiers hasn't played a Test since January last year when he turned out against England in Centurion which the hosts won by 280 runs.
After suffering an elbow injury against West Indies, de Villiers missed the Test series against New Zealand at home, the Test tour of Australia and Sri Lanka's Test visit. In March the charismatic batsman announced that he would miss the tour of New Zealand to manage workload and keep himself ready for major tournaments.
"I made some important decisions for my life and career in the last year or so in order for me to have the best chance of winning trophies and being part of a successful team," de Villiers was quoted saying by Cricbuzz.
"Physically I realised I'm the best I can be when I'm fresh and looking forward to cricket instead of the other way around and being tired when I'm playing. Spending time with the family has done me a world of good and it is about finding the balance of working hard to win with time away from the game."
Asked whether he had retired from the longest format of the game, de Villiers replied, "I haven't retired, no. But I'm not going to change my decision. I'll look indecisive."
Following a disappointing IPL, where he scored a mere 216 runs, his lowest since the 2010 campaign (7 matches), the South African is now preparing for the three-match ODI series against England before taking part in the Champions Trophy.
De Villiers reserved special praise for England, saying they have reinvented themselves in ODIs after an embarrassing 2015.
"I remember thinking in 2015 they had hit rock bottom. The way they came back from that earned a lot of respect around the world," he said.
Despite being one of the favourites for every major tournament, South Africa have always fallen short. The Proteas have only won one major ICC event, the Champions Trophy in 1998, and 33-year-old de Villiers is keen on winning something for his country before he calls it a day.
"I haven't won one of these trophies in my career, so I'm pretty desperate to win one, and we'll do anything we can to get out on top. We know these tournaments are very competitive - there are eight teams that want to win it and can win it but we do think we've got a very good squad here. I've got a good feeling about this one," he said.
