David Miller Pays Tribute to 'Abbas' AB de Villiers

Tributes poured in from all quarters, as AB de Villiers brought down curtains on his illustrious career on Wednesday.

The former South Africa skipper, on May 23, announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate effect. He explained tiredness and the desire to retire while being at the top made him take the decision.

He confirmed in a video on that he had played his last game for South Africa.

“After 114 test matches, 228 one day internationals and 78 T20 internationals it is time for others to take over. I’ve had my turn and to be honest I’m tired,” he said in a video message on Twitter.

“This is a tough decision, I have thought long and hard about it, and I’d like to retire while still playing decent cricket. After the fantastic (test) series wins against India and Australia, now feels like the right time to step aside.

“It would not be right for me to pick and choose where, when and in what format I play for the Proteas. For me, in the green and gold, it must be everything or nothing,” he added.

The retirement ended a stellar career spanned well over a decade. De Villiers carved his niche in the history of the game with his extraordinary exploits.

Fondly known as Mr 360 degree for his scarcely-believable ability to play all around the part, de Villiers retired with a Test average of 50.66.

He is South Africa’s fourth-highest scorer in Tests with 8,765 runs. He made 22 Test centuries and also took 222 catches and five stumpings.

Overall, he scored a staggering 20,014 international runs (8765 in Tests, 9577 in ODIs and 1672 in T20Is). He also finished his career with a batting average over 50 in both Tests, and ODIs.

The right-hander also holds the record for the fastest 50, fastest 100 and fastest 150 in ODIs, all coming against the Windies. He smashed a 31-ball 100 in Johannesburg in 2015 and hit a 66-ball 162 in the 2015 World Cup encounter in Sydney.

With the whole world paying tribute to the retiring legend, his teammate David Miller also joined the bandwagon.

The southpaw took to Twitter to post a special message for his former skipper. Calling de Villiers ‘Abbas’, Miller wrote:

“Congrats to @ABdeVilliers17 for a career that changed the way the game was played. Inspiration to so many and an example of a true champion. Privilege to have played with you Abbas. #ABDevilliers #Legend”

Congrats to @ABdeVilliers17 for a career that changed the way the game was played. Inspiration to so many and an example of a true champion. Privilege to have played with you Abbas. #ABDevilliers #Legend

— David Miller (@DavidMillerSA12) May 24, 2018