DE VILLIERS PRAISES RETIRING AMLA

Former South African captain AB de Villiers hailed his former teammate Hashim Amla, who announced his retirement from international cricket on Thursday.

Amla, the only South African to score a triple Test match century announced his retirement from international cricket, just days after fast bowler Dale Steyn said he was quitting Tests.

Amla, 36, said he was retiring from all international cricket after a 15-year career during which he hit 55 centuries in 349 matches across all formats.

He followed record-breaking fast bowler Steyn who on Monday said he was retiring from Test cricket, although he remains available for international white-ball cricket.

“They will be missed, they are two greats of South African cricket,” former international teammate AB de Villiers told Sky Sports.“it’s a big surprise about Hashim. I watched him grow into one of the world’s great players.”

Amla said he thanked “the fans for energising me when times were tough, and for celebrating with me when we succeeded together”.

AB de Villiers recalled how Amla had overcome his early cricketing struggles, tweeting: “So many doubted u early on, but your fighting spirit, humility & incredible one of a kind talent took u to the top of the mountain.”

Initially regarded as a Test specialist, Amla only made his one-day international debut in 2008 but soon proved that classic stroke play, mainly as an opening batsman, was as effective as power hitting in the limited overs game. When he was at the peak of his career, between 2010 and 2016, he had an average of above 50 in both Tests and one-day internationals, while maintaining a scoring strike rate of better than 90 runs per 100 balls in one-day games. In recent years, though, Amla’s form dropped off and he struggled at the recent World Cup in England and Wales.