Evergreen superhero
STAR MAKES STUNNING RETURN FROM SABBATICAL
Proteas make easy meat of Tigers to clinch series with game in hand.
Despite his four-month sabbatical from international cricket, AB de Villiers continues to improve and push the boundaries as he showed in Paarl yesterday as his career-best score led South Africa to a 104-run, series-clinching win over Bangladesh in the second ODI.
De Villiers lashed a remarkable 176 off just 104 balls, immediately catapulting him back into the limelight of South African cricket, from which his absence has caused such angst.
Bangladesh had sent the Proteas in to bat on a pitch that was sluggish in the morning, and De Villiers was given the perfect platform by the opening stand of 90 between Quinton de Kock and Hashim Amla, which was ended when the wicketkeeper was trapped lbw by spinner Shakib alHasan for 46.
Amla continued his prolific form with another fine knock of 85 off 92 balls, before being caught behind off Rubel Hossain, but De Villiers, who had come to the crease after 18 overs, ploughed on relentlessly.
He reached both his first and second fifties off 34 deliveries, unperturbed by the slow pitch and heavy outfield which limited his boundary count to just 10 fours and a single six in his 25th ODI century, a landmark reached previously only by Amla. It was the sixth time De Villiers has reached three figures in less than 70 balls.
De Villiers then started really cutting loose and his last 76 runs came off just 36 deliveries, and included six more sixes, making him just the sixth batsmen to hammer 200 ODI maximums. His total of 15 fours and seven sixes for his innings dwarfed the five fours and a single six managed by the rest of the Proteas batsmen.
When De Villiers was eventually dismissed by Rubel in the 48th over, caught at cow-corner, South Africa had already piled up 343 for four, but they were pegged back a bit to 353 for six after their 50 overs, thanks to some fine death bowling by the best of the Bangladesh bowlers, Rubel finishing with four for 62 in 10 overs.
Bangladesh were given some hope by Imrul Kayes (68) and Mushfiqur Rahim (60), but they were pegged back brilliantly in the middle overs by Dwaine Pretorius, who again took two for 48, and Andile Phehlukwayo, who produced career-best figures of four for 40 in his 10 overs.
Leg-spinner Imran Tahir took three for 50 as Bangladesh were beaten by another huge margin, South Africa now eyeing a return to number one in the ICC rankings if they can also win the third ODI in East London on Sunday.