ABD may have retired due to team not winning and pressure but that happens at RCB too, claims Aakash Chopra 

ABD may have retired due to team not winning and pressure but that happens at RCB too, claims Aakash Chopra 

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de Villiers during one of the practice sessions whilst playing for South Africa

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Cricket expert Aakash Chopra has stated that AB de Villiers may well have retired due to the pressure of T20Is especially with his team not winning much but feels that happens with him at RCB too. He also compared him to Indian stalwarts in terms of getting standing ovations in India.

The final chapter of AB de Villiers' comeback saga was unveiled a few days back when Cricket South Africa made it clear that the Proteas great will stay permanently retired and won't return back for internationals. It was quite opposite to what he was thinking during this year or last year's IPL when he wanted to perform well and throw his hat for selection in the Proteas outfit. But, now that would never happen as South African head coach Mark Boucher also revealed that the 37-year-old didn't want to take anyone else's place who had been part of the system and it's time to move on from de Villiers.

Former Indian Test opener and cricket expert Aakash Chopra has speculated that AB de Villiers may well have decided against coming back for South Africa due to the fact that the team doesn't win much and puts him under pressure. However, he added that happens even when he plays for the Bangalore-based franchise in the IPL and that doesn't stop him from doing well. 

"It could be because the team was not winning and there was a lot of pressure on him but that happens with RCB also where the team does not win but he still does well. A little bit of paralysis by analysis. I remember a World Cup where his team decided that he does well when he comes after 10 overs," Chopra said, reported HT.

AB de Villiers has been one of the most popular cricketers in India. On his last tour of India in 2015, despite being the captain of the opposition side, the crowd would go berserk every time he would walk into the middle and start chanting his name. That was one of the most unique sights as generally Indian crowd is rather hostile to the foreign players. Aakash Chopra compared ABDv with the likes of MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in terms of getting the crowd love in India. 

"If we see Indian cricket's immediate span, Dhoni, Kohli, and Rohit are the three players who cause a roar when they enter the ground. I saw a similar standing ovation given to AB de Villiers before the match. It was as if he was an Indian."

"The kind of love and affection, and the admiration he has generated in Indian hearts. There are a few moments that get etched in your mind, which remain with you forever. This was such a moment which happened to me with regards to AB de Villiers during an India-South Africa match in Dharamsala," Chopra added.

de Villiers was extremely successful in ODIs and Tests and averaged above 50 in both the formats, however, in T20Is, his numbers were average at best, and in stark contrast to his T20 numbers. Chopra termed AB's Test and ODI numbers 'phenomenal' but also pointed out how he could never do well in T20 internationals.

"His Test and ODI career numbers are wonderful. He scored 8765 runs in Tests at an average of 50.66. He reached close to ten thousand runs in ODIs, 9577 runs at an even better average of 53.50, and a strike rate above 100. That's phenomenal," Chopra further went on.

"But his T20I numbers, he has played 75 matches which are quite a few, but only 1672 runs in that at an average of 26 and a strike rate of 135. He did not hit a century and ten half-centuries. But if you see T20s, there is a difference of chalk and cheese between his T20I and T20 numbers. He is a runaway match-winner in T20s, he was the same player in Tests and ODIs but for whatever reason his performances for South Africa in T20Is were not that good," Chopra said.

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