AB De Villiers Reveals That 2015 Semi-Final Defeat To New Zealand Played A Significant Role In Him Taking Retirement

AB de Villiers, former South African captain, has revealed that the heartbreaking semi-final defeat against New Zealand in the 2015 World Cup contributed greatly towards him taking a premature retirement back in 2018.

South Africa suffered a soul-crushing four-wicket defeat at the hands of hosts New Zealand in a high-scoring rain-affected encounter at Eden Park in Auckland, and De Villiers admitted of struggling to come to terms with it.

“That really wore me down a touch but I kept playing, I tried to bite the bullet, I tried to be there. I was batting really well. I still had incredible friendships and memories,” AB de Villiers said during a ”Cricbuzz in Conversation” show hosted by Harsha Bhogle.

AB de Villiers, one of the greatest-ever batsmen to have played the game, shocked the world when he announced his retirement despite being at the peak of his powers in 2018.

De Villiers had then said that he ‘ran out of gas’ and ‘was feeling tired’ as the reasons behind his retirement.

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‘I should’ve shared my emotions’- AB de Villiers

However, the legendary batsman admitted that the defeat played a huge role behind his decision.

“From a personal point of view, yeah it played a huge role. We got beaten by sport on the night and it was actually a beautiful thing but it was difficult for me to get through that year and to specifically meet up with the team again a few months later, having to go again,” AB de Villiers said.

“Here we go again, we have to restart but I am like hold on, I am not over this World Cup. It hurt too much. So yes, I am sensitive and those kinds of things play a huge role in how I feel and my ambitions,” de Villiers said.

De Villiers revealed that the next 12 months following the defeat were really difficult and he regrets not opening up about his emotions.

“The next 12 months were really tough for me. Maybe I should’ve been more honest about it when I look back and communicated about it. I felt like I was a little bit alone at the time but it”s silly to say that you’re alone if you don’t seek help, if you don’t talk about it. If I could have it over again, I would probably open up discussions with the coach, administrators and discuss my way forward. I should’ve shared my emotions with them and things that bothered me. I didn’t.” AB De Villiers added.

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