AB De Villiers Retires From All Forms Of Cricket, Take A Look At 5 Of His Best Innings

Throughout his career, AB de Villiers earned many names like ‘superman’, ‘maverick’, ‘Mr 360’. As the South African cricket giant called retirement on an international career on Wednesday, let’s have a glimpse at how de Villiers stood up to every word used to describe his remarkable presence.

The right-handed batsman, who also kept wickets initially has gathered 20,014 runs across formats.

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. pic.twitter.com/W1Z41wFeli
— AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) November 19, 2021

Chasing Down The Balls

Early in his career, he made an impact by helping South Africa chase down 414 in a Test against Australia in Perth in 2008. He remained unbeaten on 106 (nine fours) off 186 balls. Graeme Smith, the then National South African Cricket Team skipper, had scored 108 to set the stage.

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Double hundred

In the Abu Dhabi heat, de Villiers shone in whites scoring a double century against Pakistan in 2010. He remained unbeaten on 278 off 418 balls (23 fours and six sixes) and batted for 601 minutes. In the interest of the team, he didn’t disapprove of a declaration as the scoreboard read 584/9. The match was drawn, but de Villiers provided a fine example of how a game is played despite the tough weather.

33 off 220 balls in Test

De Villiers was not only about his amazing bowling. He could switch his game depending on the need of the hour. At the Adelaide Test against Australia in 2012, South Africa was set a target of 430 and it managed to save the match on the fifth day. De Villiers played out 220 balls without not a single boundary, in 246 minutes and scored only 33 runs.

Fastest 100 off 31 balls

On January 18, 2015, de Villiers broke Corey Anderson’s record of the fastest 100 (off 31 balls). Batting against the West Indies at Johannesburg, he reached the three-figure mark in 31 balls, broken down to 16 sixes and nine fours. De Villiers was finally dismissed for 149 (off 44 balls). South Africa set a target of 440 and won the game by 148 runs.

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Same year, same pinch

After hammering the fastest 100 in January, De Villiers tested the Caribbean bowlers again in a month’s time, this time in a World Cup group competition in Sydney. Mr 360 scored 162* off 66 balls. The innings came down to 17 fours and eight sixes. It helped South Africa register 408 on the board. West Indies was all out for 151.

AB De Villiers holds the record for fastest 50,100 and 150 in ODI cricket and he is the only batsman ever to average above 50 with a strike rate of above 100. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time. And Cricket Fans will miss him.

Let’s take a look at some of the fans reactions on AB De Villiers’s Retirement:

What a man , what a player! Magnificent . #ABDevilliers #ThankYouABD for all the moments on the field. END OF AN ERA @ABdeVilliers17 pic.twitter.com/EICmtB1lGe
— Chirag Sharma (@sharmachirag101) November 19, 2021

Lasith Malinga
Chris Gayle
Ab De Villiers

IPL won't be same without these three legends. End of an era.
— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) November 19, 2021

Announcement ???? @ABdeVilliers17 retires from all cricket

End of an era! ???? There’s nobody like you, AB. We’ll miss you dearly at RCB. ❤️ For all that you’ve done and given to the team, to the fans, and to cricket lovers in general, #ThankYouAB ???????? Happy retirement, legend! pic.twitter.com/JivSPTVn88
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) November 19, 2021

???? End of an era ???? Happy Retirement #ABD
Thank you for everything ❤Hundred points symbol
A #legend with zero haters Raising hands#ABDevilliers ????????????His shots was superb. pic.twitter.com/TahcKECvO2
— Dhoni Fan Club (@DhoniFanClub16) November 19, 2021

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Ab De Villiers in T20 Cricket:-

•Matches - 340
•Innings - 320
•Runs - 9424
•Average - 37.24
•Strike rate - 150.13
•50s - 69
•100s - 4
•4s - 753
•6s - 436

Genius, Legend, Superman. - End Of An Era. pic.twitter.com/pTOYvLwURk
— CricketMAN2 (@man4_cricket) November 19, 2021

It's end of an era,
End of a magician batsman
Thank you ABD for everything ❤#ABDevilliers pic.twitter.com/prqyzKtTRF
— Tushar Bhati (@Freakingurjar) November 19, 2021

Ab De Villers ????
End of an era
My all time favourite
One of the finest player
Mr.360
AbD retired from all cricket ????????#ABDevilliers pic.twitter.com/FNEEnO7Bxo
— Manish Shukla (@ShuklaJi_5) November 19, 2021