Cricket star de Villiers retires

Many talk about it, yet few do it. AB de Villiers retired from international cricket on Wednesday while still at the top of his game as one of the best batsmen in the world.

Although de Villiers’ batting, which dazzled audiences across the world over a 14-year international career, was still as good as it ever was, the demands of international cricket were too much.

“It is time for others to take over. I’ve had my turn and, to be honest, I’m tired,” de Villiers said in a video posted on his official Twitter account announcing his retirement.

The 34-year-old de Villiers made the announcement from his home town of Pretoria, where he has spent his domestic career playing for the Titans. He said he would still play for the Titans, but there would be no more international cricket or Indian Premier League.

“It’s not about earning more somewhere else, it’s about running out of gas and feeling like it’s time to move on,” he said. “Everything comes to an end.” De Villiers said he had no plans to play overseas.

South Africans were expecting de Villiers to end his test career any time now, especially after back-to-back series wins over topranked India and fierce rival Australia in the last four months. He had been expected to play one-day internationals and have one more go at winning a World Cup title next year.

“This is a tough decision,” de Villiers said. “I’ve thought long and hard about it and I’d like to retire while still playing decent cricket. And after the fantastic series wins against India and Australia, now feels like the right time to step aside.”

De Villiers was in masterful form in the recent four-test series.