AB De Villiers Turns Back The Clock: Blazing Fifty, Then A Boundary-Rope Stunner
India Champions' journey to defend their World Championship of Legends title began on a horrific note as they lost their opening clash against South Africa.
- India Champions lost their opening World Championship of Legends match to South Africa by 88 runs (DLS)
- AB de Villiers turned back the clock and scored 63 not out off 30 balls
- Apart from this, de Villiers also made a stunning effort to dismiss Yusuf Pathan off Imran Tahir's delivery
India Champions' journey to defend their World Championship of Legends title began on a horrific note as they lost their opening clash against South Africa. After refusing to play against Pakistan Champions, due to the political tensions between the two nations, Yuvraj Singh and co began their campaign against the Proteas in Northampton and faced a big defeat by 88 runs. It was a captain's knock from AB de Villiers, who scored 63* off 30 balls and propelled South Africa to 208/6 in 20 overs. Later, India were restricted to 111/9 as rain stopped the play.
watching AB de Villiers bat in 2025 pic.twitter.com/3649Wvnnrl
— Eems (@NaeemahBenjamin) July 22, 2025
Apart from his heroics with the bat, de Villiers also proved his worth on field In the 8th over of India's chase, Yusuf Pathan hammered a big shot towards the long-on on a full delivery from spinner Imran Tahir.
De Villiers, who was placed nearby, slid towards the boundary line and brilliantly grabbed the ball. However, he knew he could not complete the catch without falling outside the boundary, so, he threw the ball towards Sarel Erwee, who then made a brilliant dive and took an excellent catch.
𝐏𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐀𝐁 𝐝𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭
— FanCode (@FanCode) July 22, 2025
Even after four years away from the game, he's making the impossible look easy#WCL2025 #ABD pic.twitter.com/ixmXJ6YBSK
This moment left all the fans and even the commentators stunned as de Villiers truly showed that despite his retirement, he is still fit to play.
Coming to the match, India Champions suffered a massive 88-run defeat (via DLS method) to South Africa Champions in their campaign opener of the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 clash.
South Africa Champions captain de Villiers rolled back the years, smashing a 30-ball 63 with the bat and orchestrating a mind-boggling catch in the outfield to power his side to victory.
Put into bat by India Champions captain Yuvraj Singh, South Africa put up a daunting total of 208/6 in 20 overs. Yuvraj, however, would not bat, suffering a niggle while fielding. India's batting order - headlined by star names like Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu and Yusuf Pathan - suffered a collapse, managing only 111/9 before rain halted play.
India Cricket Team
South Africa Cricket Team
AB de Villiers
Yusuf Pathan
Yuvraj Singh