A.B. de Villiers chose to skip Test matches last year – save for one, against Zimbabwe, in December – in order to focus on the 2019 ODI World Cup.
At the time, de Villiers had his sights set on powering South African to a maiden World Cup triumph. It now looks like the World Cup has moved down his priority list.
In a media interaction here on Monday, de Villiers shared his views on competing in 2019 WC and other topics.
Excerpts:
2019 ODI World Cup:
I’m taking it one game at a time for now. Right now, I want to do well for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL. To win the World Cup is not my ultimate dream. I’ve changed my mindset with that. If we win it, it’ll be a bonus. But if we don’t, it won't define my career.
RCB batting's reliance on Virat Kohli and de Villiers:
I’ve heard this theory, but I don’t see it. Every team has an international player in the top-4 who will feel the pressure. Neither Virat nor I feel any extra pressure. We have a team of match-winners. It is important for us to share the load.
Tips from Rajasthan Royals and South African player Heinrich Klaasen:
I worked with Klaasen in the off-season and took some tips from him. I watched him score hundreds and saw how still he was at the crease. I’ve tried to use that tip with my batting. Even after playing international cricket for 14 years, you sometimes forget the basics. My game is based on 5 to 10 very basic principles of the game. Sometimes, when you’re not scoring, you have to try and remember the basics again.
Trent Boult’s amazing catch to dismiss Kohli on Saturday:
It was certainly the catch of the tournament, and I can’t see anyone beating it. I’m certainly going to try (to beat the catch), but it’ll take a really freakish effort. I can’t believe it stuck. It’s not the type of catches we take in practice – 10 in a row. This is more like 1 in 1000. It was almost a game-changer for them. It’s in my top-10 list of best catches of all time.
Kohli the captain:
The true judge of a good captain is when you don’t perform well, and still, do a good job of leading a side. He has a been a fantastic captain for us, and I know that he’s going to score a lot of runs for us in the rest of the tournament. Even if he doesn’t, I know he’ll be a good leader and the team will back him up.
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