Centurion, July 19 (IANS) Veteran South African batsman AB de Villiers turned the clock in stunning style as his half-century powered Eagles to the gold medal in the 3TC Solidarity Cup in Centurion.
Aiden Markram (70 off 33 balls) and de Villiers (61 off 24 balls) slammed respective half-centuries as Eagles (160/4 in 12 overs) got the better of Kites (138/3) and Kingfishers (113/5) by a comfortable margin.
de Villiers admitted that he felt a bit ‘scratchy’ early on but soon found the rhythm that saw him hit the ball to all corners of the SuperSport Park.
“I was surprised a few came out of the middle of the bat. I had a few nets leading up to this game, so I wasn’t completely cold,” de Villiers was quoted as saying by iol.co.za.
“It was scratchy early on, but once I got started it was like riding that bicycle that I missed so badly.
“Honestly, it was just great to be out there. Now that I’ve started I am definitely going to keep in the mix of practising and try to get that form at the top level of what I can be,” he added.
ABD hung up his illustrious boots in 2018 after featuring in 114 Tests, 228 ODIs and 78 T20s for the Proteas national team.
There were reports before the 2019 World Cup that de Villiers was ready to come out of retirement and play in the showpiece event in England and Wales but the move didn’t materialise in the end.
Meanwhile, South Africa head coach Mark Boucher had earlier stated that de Villiers would be considered for the national team again only if he shows good form and proves himself to be the ‘best man for the job’.
de Villiers, however, remained coy over his potential return and pointed towards the uncertain international cricket calendar in the wake of coronavirus pandemic.
“I don’t know what to expect to be honest. It has been quite a few months now and nothing really has been properly scheduled yet,” de Villiers said.
“Obviously I would just like to get out there and play cricket. There are lots of talks, but in the meantime, I will stay fit in the gym and hit cricket balls. Hopefully the virus moves on and we can get back to as normal as possible in no time.”
–IANS
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