AB De Villiers Retires, Anushka Sharma Wishes Him 'A Blessed Life'
Reactions poured in from all over as the 34-year-old made it clear that he had no plans of moving out and playing overseas.
Former South Africa skipper AB de Villiers shocked the world on Wednesday by announcing his retirement from all forms of international cricket with immediate effect. "I have decided to retire from all international cricket with immediate effect. After 114 Test matches, 228 ODIs and 78 T20 Internationals, it is time for others to take over," De Villiers said in a video posted on Twitter. Reactions poured in from all over as the 34-year-old made it clear that he had no plans of moving out and playing overseas. Anushka Sharma, Bollywood actress and wife of Indian cricketer Virat Kohli, also took to Twitter to wish De Villiers and his wife a happy life ahead. "In life, what we do to positively impact the lives of others has greater meaning than what we accomplish for ourselves. You've managed to do both beautifully & always with such grace & integrity. Wishing you & Danielle a blessed, happy life ahead ?? @ABdeVilliers17 @DanielleDV27," Anushka wrote.
In life, what we do to positively impact the lives of others has greater meaning than what we accomplish for ourselves. You've managed to do both beautifully & always with such grace & integrity. Wishing you & Danielle a blessed, happy life ahead @ABdeVilliers17 @DanielleDV27
— Anushka Sharma (@AnushkaSharma) May 23, 2018
"I had my time and to be honest I am tired. This is a tough decision, I thought long and hard about it and I wanted to retire while still playing decent cricket. After fantastic series wins against India and Australia, now feels the right time to step aside," De Villiers said.
"It would not be right for me to pick and choose where and when and in what format I play for the Proteas. For me, in green and gold it must be everything or nothing. I will always be grateful to my teammates, my coaches and the staff of Cricket South Africa for their support all these years," he further said.
The 34-year-old batsman said 'the time is right' for him to hang up his boots, bringing a close to a sterling 14-year-long career.
De Villiers has a batting average of over 50 in both Test and ODI cricket. He scored 8,765 Test runs for South Africa and made his 22nd century in the format against Australia in March. His final appearance in national colours came in Johannesburg, where South Africa beat Australia by 492 runs and clinched the four-match series 3-1.
De Villiers' Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore was knocked out of the tournament following a defeat to Rajasthan Royals on Saturday. RCB needed to beat Rajasthan to stay in contention for the play-offs, but stunningly lost seven wickets for 30 runs to lose by 30 runs.
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