Why T20 World Cup will miss mercurial genius of AB de Villiers

The ICC T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held in India and should run from 18 October to 15 November, 2021. During that period, there will be no other cricket going on anywhere. This means players will not be otherwise occupied, and, if fit and willing, will be available to turn out in their country’s colours. Being the only game in town, eyes of the entire cricket community will be fixed on the World Cup. Naturally, then, the players will all be eager to display their best wares. And because it will be the best going up against the best, the promise is for mouth-watering contests in front of a gigantic global audience. It is with the foregoing in mind that we were somewhat pleased with the prospect of AB de Villiers representing South Africa at the World Cup. And it is with grave disappointment that we learned that he will not be taking part . De Villiers is, without question, one of the game’s premier players, a batsman capable of walking into any current team, and likely to have been worthy of a place in any team of any era, playing in any format. It goes without saying, therefore, that despite having retired from international cricket in 2018, his addition to the South African squad would have seriously improved their chances of performing well in the tournament. It is for good reason that our hopes were raised. The player appeared to be keen, even saying, not long ago, that rejoining the team would be “fantastic.” After a match-winning effort – 76 from 34 balls - for his Indian Premier League (IPL) team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) recently, the batsman spoke of having conversations with team coach Mark Boucher: “We have been talking about it. Already last year he asked me if I would be interested and I said ‘absolutely’." It came as something of a shock then, when we were informed that de Villiers will not be turning out again for his country. According to Cricket South Africa, de Villiers’ talks with the authorities “have concluded with the batsman deciding once and for all that his retirement will remain final.” Given how enthused de Villiers was about his return to the South African side, this revelation by Boucher is quite interesting. The coach said de Villiers “alluded to being concerned about coming in ahead of other players who have been a part of the system. I don’t think it sat well with him, which I understand. But as a coach, I needed to try and get our best players, for the team and the environment. AB is an energy booster in any environment, but I respect his reasoning. It was worth a go, but now let’s move forward.” [caption id=“attachment_4480157” align=“alignnone” width=“1200”] AB de Villiers spoke of returning for the 50-over World Cup in 2019 as well, but that too came to naught. File image.[/caption] As a coach, Boucher wanted the country’s best team on the park. South Africa’s best cricket team has to include AB de Villiers. And while it is admirable that the batsman was wary of depriving another player of a place in the side, he should be aware his country’s needs would almost certainly be better served with him in the line-up. This is not the first time the promise of de Villiers’ return raised hopes. He spoke of returning for the 50-over World Cup in 2019 as well. That too came to naught, and the batsman admitted that he made himself available too late. On both occasions, the fans were lured into dreaming, for a while, before seeing those dreams dashed by the news that there will be no return for the batting genius. And batting genius is who he is. He destroys attacks as a matter of course, and does it with the kind of artistry and aplomb that few batsmen can muster. The aesthetic fury he displays when in full flow is something to behold. And the destruction he wreaks is seemingly done without a hint of malice and with precious little violence. None can match his level of inventiveness, and it’s not for nothing that he is dubbed Mr 360 as there is hardly a blade of grass of the outfield that is outside the reach of his strokeplay. For many, he is the foremost T20 batsman in the game. If he played the other formats he’d be the best batsman in the game. Period. We get both style and substance from the South African. Despite his 37 years, and though he has not played any serious cricket in over a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he showed in the IPL that he is in good touch and remains as capable as ever. The IPL is likely the best T20 league in the world, and de Villiers has long been a standout. Of the players with more than 2000 runs, he has the highest average (40.8), and is second in the strike rate (152.40) only to Virender Sehwag. There will surely be a lot of exciting action in the 2021 T20 World Cup. Some of the game’s best players will be on show. Names like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Glen Maxwell, Jos Buttler, Trent Boult, and Jofra Archer are expected to light up the tournament, providing loads of thrills for the fans to enjoy. But AB de Villiers will be sorely missed.