AB pumped to lead Proteas
De Villiers believes that there has been a momentum shift in the Test series
WHILE SOME South African children sobbed and begged to be taken home on their first day of school yesterday, AB de Villiers strolled into the Wanderers for his first public appearance as the Test captain of South Africa with the look of a man happy with his lot in life.
He is, they say, an energetic captain. He wants to lead by example, by scoring runs and fielding each ball like it is his last. His team is 1-0 down to England with two Tests to play, a tough time to take over as captain. Yesterday, his described his emotions at being the captain, a job he has coveted, were “pretty normal”.
“It’s something I’m looking forward to,” said De Villiers. “I’m very excited, but everything feels very normal to me. We have a very stable team culture and team spirit going, especially over the last few years. Not much has changed in the team set-up. I personally feel the same. Tomorrow there may be a few butterflies, but that’s normal for me in every Test I play.”
De Villiers is expected to be offered the Test captaincy in the long term, but yesterday said he was not committing to it past the end of this series. There had been talk about his state of mind and his future during the first match of the series in Durban, when it was reported he was looking at cutting back on his workload and had been considering retirement.
“There have been a few rumours floating round, and in most rumours there is a little bit of truth,” said De Villiers. “For two or three years I’ve been searching for the right answers, to play a little less cricket in one way or another, to keep myself fresh and keep enjoying the game. I’ve found myself on the pitch in the last few years, every now and then, not very often, but not enjoying myself as much as I should be, which raises concerns in myself.
“As for the job (Test captaincy), I’m not too sure. We have two matches and there is a nice big break before we play Test cricket again. A lot of things can happen and I don’t want to commit myself to too much before then. I am very hungry to make a success of the next two Test matches.
“I honestly believe there was a bit of a momentum shift in the last Test match. I’ve played enough series in the past to know that a little momentum shift like that doesn’t just happen. It’s a big thing in a series like this. It’s up to us to keep that kind of momentum going into this Test match. I think there is a good energy in the team, not that there hasn’t been a good energy in the team. I thought Hash led the team exceptionally well. There may be more of a fresh vibe. I am a little bit more of an energetic guy.”
De Villiers, who earns $1.1-million playing for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL, is concerned that the global cricket calendar is not being managed properly, with series and T20 tournaments overlapping and creating a never-ending season.
England captain Alastair Cook agreed with De Villiers that the ICC needed to take action to save Test cricket. It was put to Cook that Test cricket is nearing its “end game”.
“No, I don’t think we are reaching the end game,” said Cook. “Everyone has enjoyed this series and a lot the series we have played recently. Everyone knows Test cricket. Everyone knows we have to protect Test cricket, because it is the ultimate test of a cricketer. You really earn your stripes if do well over a long period of time. As game progresses and evolved, you can’t stand still. You have to look to how we can improve the game. Who would have said 10 years ago the effect (T20) would have had. I was watching the Big Bash today, and were 20-30 000 people at Adelaide. It’s a great spectacle. The people who run it, know the responsibility to push it forward in the best way possible.” LEADING FROM THE FRONT: AB de Villiers is thrilled that he will be leading South Africa in the Test arena and says his team is ready to level the series with England at the Wanderers starting today.