Profile
Abraham Benjamin “AB” de Villiers can do it all – bat, occasionally bowl, keep and even sing. Along with captain Graeme Smith, he’s the only other youngster who made a permanent place for himself in the South African squad following retirements of stars of the previous generation.
AB debuted in late 2004 against a visiting England, partnering Graeme Smith as an opener. In his second Test in the same series, he was given gloving duties as stand-in for the injured Mark Boucher. It also led to a demotion in the batting line up to the lower order. The move worked well, yielding a debut fifty in the second inning of the Test. In the last of the 5-Test series, scores of 92 and 109 while opening the innings announced his arrival.
In ODIs though, it took a while for De Villiers to find his footing, recording his first half-century in his 15th attempt against Australia. Once fully settled into the International stage, De Villiers was South Africa’s most consistent performers in all formats, being a mainstay in the side. All this despite not having a defined role, deployed as an opener, middle or lower order batsman depending on the situation. As an accomplished keeper, he was often called to deputize for Boucher, and even being touted as his eventual replacement. His presence in the batting line up was important in South Africa’s return to the pinnacle of cricket, registering historic wins in Australia and going on a 3 year unbeaten run since 2007. He also helped South Africa to a semi-final berth in the 2007 World Cup, restoring respectability after a poor showing in the tournament’s previous edition. Consistent performances over the years gave the Proteas a new ODI as well as T20 captain in AB, when he replaced Graeme Smith in 2011, post the ICC Cricket World Cup.
Fast Facts
- AB de Villiers’ 78 Test innings without scoring a duck is the most by any player in Test history.
- His unbeaten 217 at Ahmedabad was the first double-century by a South African against India.
Statistics
Show:
| |
Matches |
Innings |
Runs |
NO |
Avg. |
SR |
100's |
50's |
HS |
| Test |
74 |
125 |
5457 |
14 |
49.16 |
54.95 |
13 |
29 |
278* |
| ODI |
127 |
123 |
4998 |
21 |
49 |
93.19 |
13 |
28 |
146 |
| T20 |
36 |
35 |
680 |
7 |
24.28 |
119.29 |
0 |
4 |
79* |
| IPL |
60 |
52 |
1301 |
14 |
34.23 |
128.43 |
1 |
8 |
105* |
| CLT20 |
1 |
1 |
31 |
0 |
31 |
124 |
0 |
0 |
31 |
| |
Matches |
Innings |
Balls |
Runs |
Wickets |
BBI |
BBM |
Avg. |
Econ. |
4w |
5w |
10w |
Extras |
| Test |
74 |
4 |
198 |
99 |
2 |
2/49 |
/ |
49.5 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| ODI |
127 |
1 |
12 |
22 |
0 |
0/22 |
/ |
- |
11 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| |
Catches |
Stumpings |
Runouts |
| Test |
99 |
1 |
4 |
| ODI |
99 |
3 |
18 |
| T20 |
35 |
4 |
3 |
| IPL |
33 |
7 |
10 |
| CLT20 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
| |
Matches |
Won |
Lost |
Tie |
No Result |
Win percentage |
| ODI |
8 |
6 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
75 |
| T20 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
66.67 |
Career
Span:
- Test:
- 2004-2012
- ODI:
- 2005-2012
- T20:
- 2006-2012
- IPL:
- 2008-2012
- CLT20:
- 2011-2011
- Test
-
- Debut:
- South Africa Vs England at St George's Park, Port Elizabeth - Dec 17, 2004
- Last played:
- South Africa Vs New Zealand at Basin Reserve, Wellington - Mar 23, 2012
- ODI
-
- Debut:
- South Africa Vs England at Goodyear Park (Springbok), Bloemfontein - Feb 02, 2005
- Last played:
- South Africa Vs New Zealand at Eden Park, Auckland - Mar 03, 2012
- T20
-
- Debut:
- South Africa Vs Australia at New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg - Feb 24, 2006
- Last played:
- South Africa Vs New Zealand at Eden Park, Auckland - Feb 22, 2012
- IPL
-
- Debut:
- Delhi Daredevils Vs Chennai Super Kings at MA Chidambaram Stadium (Chepauk), Chennai (Madras) - May 02, 2008
- Last played:
- Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Deccan Chargers at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad - May 20, 2012
- CLT20
-
- Debut:
- Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Warriors at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru - Sep 23, 2011
- Last played:
- Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Warriors at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru - Sep 23, 2011
