AB to reveal future plans to CSA bosses
A B DE Villiers left South Africa’s tour of England saying he would decide his cricket future in August.
One of the outstanding batsmen of his generation, the 33year-old headed home after captaining the Proteas in a 19-run defeat by England in Cardiff on Sunday that saw them beaten 2-1 in a three-match Twenty20 series.
They previously lost a oneday international series to England by the same scoreline and then suffered a hugely disappointing first-round exit at the Champions Trophy.
But a Test series against England is the centrepiece of a fourmonth tour.
However, it has long been planned that De Villiers would miss the four-Test campaign to take a break from the strain of being one of the world’s leading players in all three international formats, as well as a man in demand at lucrative Twenty20 franchise events globally.
Bangladesh are due to tour South Africa in September and De Villiers said he expected to know by then what his international workload would entail.
“I am going to meet with CSA (Cricket South Africa) in August, and that will decide my (international) future,” De Villiers told reporters after making a dashing 35 off 19 balls.
“We will see what works for both parties,” added De Villiers, who has scored more than 8 000 runs in 106 Tests, including 21 hundreds, averaging of over 50.
“We are not going to pick and choose games, but we are going to make a final decision about what happens for the next few years.”
Asked what he would do for the next few months De Villiers said: “I am going to spend a bit of time off at home with the family. I’m going to welcome my new youngster into the world, and obviously look to stay fit.
“I want to make sure I am ready for September, when Bangladesh come.”
For all his success at Test level, De Villiers’s burning ambition is to help South Africa win a maiden World Cup title.
Their attempts since a 1992 debut – after years of isolation due to apartheid – have been dogged by bad luck and reverses snatched from the jaws of allbutvictory, leaving South Africa with the unwanted tag of “chokers”.
The next World Cup takes place in England in two years’ time and De Villiers, in charge for a heartbreaking 2015 semifinal loss to co-hosts New Zealand in Auckland, said Sunday: “It’s my main dream to win a World Cup for South Africa, or to be part of it in one way or another.”
But De Villiers, whose stunning 31-ball century against the West Indies at Johannesburg in 2015 remains the fastest ODI hundred, added: “I will wait until the final decision on the coach and things like that are made.”
Russell Domingo’s future was already uncertain before he left the tour prior to the Proteas’ three-run win in the second Twenty20 at Taunton on Friday after his mother was involved in a traffic accident.
As well as De Villiers, South Africa could be without another senior batsman in Faf du Plesiss for the first Test at Lord’s, which starts on July 6.
Du Plessis, the Proteas’ Test skipper, is awaiting the birth of his first child, who is expected in the first week of July.
De Villiers, asked if he had thought about staying on to lead the Test side if Du Plessis – who missed the Twenty20 series in anticipation – was still absent, replied: “No, not at all.
“I am batting really well at the moment, and really enjoying that. I love scoring runs, and that is all I am going to miss over the next two months.” — AFP