The world of cricket received a major jolt with the sudden retirement announcement from marquee batsman, AB de Villiers.
As soon as his video was released, Twitter flooded in with messages, bidding farewell to an iconic international career.
Overlooked India cricketer, Irfan Pathan was one of the many who lauded Mr. 360 for his contribution to world cricket.
“Watta player watta man @ABdeVilliers17 congratulation on ur great career n wish u all the luck for future endeavours #ABRetires #legend,” Irfan Pathan tweeted recently.
Here’s the post
Watta player watta man @ABdeVilliers17 congratulation on ur great career n wish u all the luck for future endeavours #ABRetires #legend
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) May 23, 2018
“I have decided to retire from all international cricket with immediate effect. After 114 Test matches, 228 ODIs and 78 T20Is, it is time for others to take over. To be honest, I am tired,” De Villiers mentioned in the video, he released to make the shocking announcement.
If his present form was any evidence, AB had many more years of International cricket left in him. It was expected AB would represent South Africa in the World Cup of 2019, especially after renewing his contract with CSA until June next year.
AB de Villiers had a sensational last season of IPL. Photo by: Faheem Hussain /SPORTZPICS for BCCI.
Also, he was the pick of the batsmen in the recent summer of home cricket in South Africa, where he smashed glorious tons at Centurion and Port Elizabeth.
“This is a tough decision, I have thought long and hard about it. I’d like to retire while still playing decent cricket. After the fantastic series against Indian and Australia, now feels the right time to step aside,” AB de Villiers stated.