Centurion: As AB de Villiers celebrates his 36th birthday today, his chances of playing in the T20 World Cup later this year have received a massive boost as South Africa coach Mark Boucher has vouched for his return.
Boucher’s remarks came after the conclusion of the third and final T20I against England, which the team lost by five wickets.
“He’s a discussion in the media and in the public but he is no discussion for me. I have had chats with him and we will probably know pretty soon what’s going to happen with him. Like I said from day one when I took over, if we are going to a World Cup, I would like to have our best players there,” ESPN Cricinfo quoted Boucher as saying.
“If AB is in good form and he is raring to go and he makes himself available for the time we have asked him to be available; if he is the best man for the job, then he must go. It’s not about egos or anything like that, it’s about sending your best team to the World Cup to try and win that competition,” he added.
AB de Villiers was last seen in action in the Big Bash League (BBL) for Brisbane Heat.
After playing his first match in the tournament, he said that he wanted to represent South Africa in the upcoming T20 World Cup.
“I would love to. I have been talking to ‘Bouch’ (new South Africa coach Mark Boucher), (new director of cricket) Graeme Smith and (captain) Faf (du Plessis) back home, we are all keen to make it happen,” cricket.com.au had quoted De Villiers as saying.
“So I’m thinking of throwing my name in the hat and hoping that everything will work out,” he added.
The 35-year-old had announced his retirement from international cricket on May 23, 2018.
However, he tried to stage a comeback in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 but was not able to reach an agreement with the management.
The ICC T20 World Cup 2020 will commence from October 18 and will get concluded on November 15 in Australia.