The hopes of fans of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to see AB de Villiers in the RCB colors, one last time, was again broken despite his recent performances in the World Legends Championship 2025 (WCL 2025), where he looked clear, agile and always full of class.
AB de Villiers led the champions of South Africa under the 2025 WCL by the front. And when Shubhankar Mishra asked the wonderful proteas if he could get out of retirement and play one more IPL season for the RCB, he put speculation.
AB de Villiers excludes the return IPL
In his calm and humble way, the former captain of South Africa admitted that, even if he was still in good shape and active, the IPL is a different beast. He noted that the Indian League T20 extends over almost three months, and for him, it is a huge request.
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Legend has also explained that playing the tournament again would not only be a question of physical form, but it would also be a full commitment, preparation, mentally and physically locked up for months and deliver to the highest level under pressure.
Ab de Villiers: “I will be too nervous, guy. I think I just prefer to support. I am a very good supporter. Yes, IPL is just a very long tournament. It is almost a three -month tournament. It is a very big commitment for someone at the age of 41. You can not compare me to Imran Tahir. I work much harder. I had a lot more work.
AB de Villiers greets Imran Tahir, says everyone has a different journey
And many compare Ab de Villiers to other senior crickets like his former teammate, Imran Tahir, 46, who still plays T20 leagues around the world, but he clearly indicated that everyone’s journey is different.
He explained: “I mean, it’s crazy. I’m going to bring them my hat. It’s absolutely incredible. And I mean, you have to admire this. But we are all different, and I think it’s the beautiful part of the sport – some guys feel that they have enough after the age of 30. Some are only 40 years old.”
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Ab de Villiers is happy to be just a cricket supporter
The Proteas Great noted that he had worked extremely hard throughout his career and now thinks that it is time to enjoy the cricket as a supporter, no player.
De Villiers signed saying: “So I’m just, first of all, grateful to be able to have a very long career since the age of 20 until I retired. I don’t even know how long it was. It was quite long. But I gave my best and I am happy.”
In particular, de Villiers was a managing machine in IPL, in particular for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Of his total, 5162 points in the IPL, 4178 came by playing for RCB in 141 games. He broke 3 centuries and 40 fifties during his IPL career.
Two of these superb hundreds came by wearing the RCB jersey. He was one of the most liked and dangerous strikers in the history of IPL.
