Don't need to prove anyone wrong, says AB de Villiers

After a failed Champions Trophy campaign, South African skipper AB de Villiers is all set to lead an inexperienced side in 3 T20Is against hosts England. His team includes 9 players who were a part of the Champions Trophy squad, but he will not avail the services of the seniors as they are being rested prior to the Test series.

South Africa crashed out of the ICC Champions Trophy after having lost to India in a virtual quarter-final. The Proteas were pooled with Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan. They opened their campaign in style, defeating the Lankans convincingly. However, they faltered against a rejuvenated Pakistan bowling attack and eventually were handed a drubbing by the Indians in their final Group B match.

Earlier in May, they failed to overcome England in a 3-match ODI series as well. De Villiers is hence looking to use the T20I series to find the much-needed rhythm for the team, something they have lacked during their sojourn in England.

“It was a tough few days after the Champions Trophy, to go through that phase of reflecting and to hear some of the criticism. It’s never easy but I have always been the kind of guy to see the positive in that and see opportunity to improve. These three matches give me that opportunity as a player and as a captain for the team,” de Villiers said.

I just want to go play

“I don’t feel like I need to prove anyone wrong or prove something to someone. I just want to go play. I feel like a youngster starting my career again. I am really full of energy and love playing. I just want to score some runs again and captain the team to a few good wins,” he added.

The last few months haven’t been very successful for South Africa, and for AB de Villiers in particular. The Proteas won eight trophies including three fifty-over series and sat at the No.1 on the ODI rankings during the 2016-17 season. However, he has failed to captain his side to series victories, and their early exit from the Champions Trophy will scar the Proteas, thus reinforcing their tag of ‘chokers’.

A lean run with the bat for AB

AB de Villiers managed a paltry 20 runs from his three games in the CT 2017, but he insisted that he is in good nick and that he was dismissed cheaply because of poor luck. He also had a fairly quiet IPL with the Royal Challengers Bangalore, who finished at the bottom of the table.

“I feel like I am playing very well. I had a couple of bad dismissals in those two games. The first game I tried to take it on a bit. The second game I don’t know how the ball went up in the air like that. The third game I felt like I was going to get 200 off 5 balls so I got run out. There’s nothing wrong with my form. The results are not showing,” ABD said.

Reacting differently to losses

However, the skipper will focus on altering his reaction to the humiliating defeats and failures in major tournaments. “I am past that stage of really harping on it for a very long time. The difficult part is the criticism all around, just hearing the negative stuff all the time but I am past nagging about losing games of cricket because that happens. It’s happened quite a few times,” he further added.

“I am not going to look into that too much. I am ready to move on. I know I am still a good player, I know the team can still achieve amazing things and it’s important for me not to think about what happened in the past. I am not going to spend too much energy thinking about the last 10 or 12 tournaments I have played in,” AB de Villiers shared.

De Villiers has his eyes set on the 2019 World Cup and is making a conscious effort to remain fit for the event. As a result, de Villiers has opted out of Test cricket for the rest of the year. “It’s making sure I am in the best form for that 2019 World Cup. That’s the goal. I have to regroup with CSA when I get back home. The new season will be starting and I have to see how I fit in and move forward from there,” he concluded.