I Am Not The Kind Of Guy Who Likes Keeping In Touch, With Virat Kohli It’s Not Like That: AB de Villiers

Former South Africa batter AB de Villiers opened up on his bond with former RCB teammate Virat Kohli.

Kohli is the only player who has been with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) since the inception of the Indian Premier League in 2008.

Kohli has played 207 matches for the franchise in the last 14 seasons and is the current leading run-scorer of the tournament with 6283 runs at the strike rate of 129.95.

Kohli and AB de Villiers were the backbone of RCB’s batting line-up for a decade as they have won numerous matches while batting together. They also hold the highest partnership in the history of the tournament, the duo stitched 229 runs against Gujarat Lions in IPL 2016.

With Virat Kohli, it just happened naturally: AB de Villiers 

AB de Villiers said it is weird for him to stay in touch with any of his friends but it is an exceptional case with his former RCB skipper.

“It’s weird. I am not the kind of guy who likes keeping in touch. But, for some reason, with Virat, it just happened naturally. We stay in touch even though we only see each other for a couple of months in a year,” de Villiers said on RCB Podcast. 

“From a very young age, I have been bad with staying in touch with friends. I just stay in my little bubble. I like things to happen naturally. I hate a forced relationship but with Virat, it’s not like that,” he added.

I always thought Virat Kohli was a bit cocky: AB de Villiers

The former South African batter also opened in his first impression of Kohli, during his first season at RCB. However it was not something appealing to de Villiers, still, he didn’t hold anything against Kohli.

“We ran into each other a few times before we properly met. I always thought he was a bit cocky when he was younger. That was my initial impression even though I could see he has got respect,” he said.

“I felt like has got a bit of a swagger going. I didn’t hold it against him. You need that at that age. You need to have a bit more belief than the normal guy. Otherwise, you’ll drown in the deep end as a youngster,” he further added.

After spending 11 seasons at the Bangalore outfit, de Villiers, on November 19, 2021, announced his retirement from all forms of cricket including the Indian Premier League.

De Villiers made 5162 runs from 170 IPl innings at the strike rate of 151.69 and hit 40 half-centuries and three hundreds in 14 seasons of the cash-rich league.

Also Read: Virat Kohli Recalls The Moment When RCB’s Game Changed In 2011