IPL 2021: Virat Kohli Is Not Being Selfish – AB de Villiers Defends Virat Kohli's Decision To Step Down From RCB Captaincy

Veteran Proteas Batsman AB de Villiers, who is a vital member of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) has stated Virat Kohli stepping down from RCB captaincy is not a selfish move.

Virat Kohli played his last game as a captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Eliminator of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium, On Monday. Unfortunately, RCB lost the match and Virat Kohli’s was unsuccessful in winning an Indian Premier League (IPL) trophy in his 11 seasons stint as a skipper.

Meanwhile, talking about Kohli’s decision AB de Villiers said he knows what Kohli is going through after taking such a big decision. He stated:

“I’ve been in the same boat before and I can relate to what he [Kohli] is feeling and what he’s been through“

De Villiers defended his RCB mate by stating that the public has a misconception that stepping down from a certain role is being selfish but in reality, it’s completely opposite. He elaborated:

 “So there’s a mis-perception in my opinion when it comes to the public when they see people stepping down out of certain roles to let a bit of that workload go. Where they see it as being selfish, it is exactly the opposite. It is not being selfish.”

Because Of Stepping Down From Captaincy Virat Kohli Can Be A Better Version Of Himself – AB de Villiers

Former South African cricketer believes that Kohli parting ways with captaincy can result in him becoming a better version of himself. De Villiers said :

“Because of him doing that [stepping down from captaincy] he can be a better version of himself. There can be a captain coming in with that same kind of energy that he’s had for the last 7-8 years.”

The 37-year-old pointed out that he was in the same position which Virat Kohli is currently in and he faced a lot of criticism for doing things selflessly for the team. AB de Villiers said:

“I was in the same position, took quite a lot of criticism for letting some things go, where I felt I was doing the right thing for the team and not being selfish in the same process.”

” Sometimes it can be a bit misleading and people see it as ‘oh, he is now thinking about himself, he is protecting himself. It is exactly the opposite actually.”

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