Watch: Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma thrown OUT as AB de Villiers announces All-Time World XI

Legendary South African cricketer AB de Villiers has unveiled his all-time World XI, which stunned the cricket world, on the sidelines of the ongoing World Championship of Legends 2025 (WCL 2025), where he is leading the South Africa Champions in England.

The most shocking omission was of the great Indian batter Sachin Tendulkar. AB de Villiers overlooked Tendulkar despite him being widely regarded as one of the greatest batters to ever play the game. Instead, the Proteas great picked Virat Kohli, his former IPL teammate and close friend, and MS Dhoni.

AB de Villiers overlooks Sachin Tendulkar, Jasprit Bumrah, and Rohit Sharma in All-Time World XI

He picked South Africa’s Graeme Smith and Australia’s Matthew Hayden as his openers and then handed the crucial number three spot to legendary Australian captain Ricky Ponting. De Villiers’ middle order features modern-day legends Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, and Kane Williamson, with Dhoni batting at No. 7 and donning the gloves.

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However, the former South African cricketer mentioned three options for the number seven and wicketkeeping job, and they are legendary Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist or former Proteas icon Mark Boucher, apart from the charismatic former Indian captain Dhoni.

Surprisingly, there are no all-rounders in ABD’s team, overlooking even the legend Jacques Kallis. Instead, de Villiers went with a four-man bowling attack, featuring Australian speedster Mitchell Johnson and Pakistani bowler Mohammad Asif, and spin wizards Shane Warne of Australia and Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka. Glenn McGrath was named the 12th man in de Villiers’s team.

Not easy to pick between Dhoni, Gilchrist, and Boucher: AB de Villiers

AB de Villiers said in a viral video shared by Shefali Bagga on her Instagram handle: “Graeme Smith, Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting (at) 3, Virat Kohli (at) 4. Let’s go with the more current player, like a Steve Smith No. 5, Kane Williamson No. 6, (MS) Dhoni No. 7, or Gilchrist or Boucher; it’s not easy.

Let’s go for the bowlers. The four bowlers, I would say, I will start with Mitchell Johnson with a bit of pace. Mohammad Asif (at) 9, Muttiah Muralitharan 10, Shane Warne No. 11. Glenn McGrath 12th man.”

The inclusion of Mohammad Asif, who was banned for spot-fixing in 2010, raised many eyebrows. Additionally, the former Proteas batter also overlooked Jasprit Bumrah and Rohit Sharma. There was not a single player from England or the West Indies in his all-time World XI.

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A post shared by Shefalii Bagga (@shefalibaggaofficial)

Here’s AB De Villiers’ World XI of legends:

Graeme Smith, Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting, Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, MS Dhoni, Mitchell Johnson, Mohammad Asif, Muttiah Muralitharan, and Shane Warne.

12th Man: Glenn McGrath

Read Also: Gautam Gambhir receives instructions not to play with Jasprit Bumrah's career

AB de Villiers blasts 116 as South Africa crush England by 10 wickets in WCL 2025 clash

Meanwhile, AB de Villiers played a stunning knock of 116 runs off just 51 balls to guide the South Africa Champions to a dominant 10-wicket win over the England Champions in the WCL 2025 clash on July 24.

Chasing 153 runs, the South Africans got the job done in just 12.2 overs without losing a single wicket. ABD was in full flow, hitting 15 boundaries and seven sixes in his explosive innings in Leicester.

This was the South Africa Champions’ third straight win in the tournament, taking them to the top of the points table with six points from three matches.

On the other hand, the England Champions are struggling with only one point from four games and currently sit in fifth place. They will next face the Pakistan Champions on July 25.