IPL 2018: AB de Villiers awestruck by the crowd's admiration for him

There have been few cricketers over the years who have conjured roars from the audience apart from their countrymen, AB de Villiers is one of them. He is currently playing for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the eleventh edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and there has been no dearth of love and support for the South African cricketer.

The franchise played against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the do-or-die match and emerged victorious by 14 runs. De Villiers played a major role in the win and was crowned as the Player of the Match courtesy of his all-round efforts on the cricket pitch. The 34-year old scored 69 runs off 39 balls and the knock was carved with 12 boundaries and one monstrous whack out of the venue.

“An amazing feeling”- AB de Villiers

During SRH’s run-chase, the veteran grasped a stunning catch at deep mid-wicket which saw the dismissal of Alex Hales, who looked set to compile a substantial knock. The Proteas player leapt in the air and somehow managed to latch on to the leather. Meanwhile, the crowd kept chanting his name and showered their love for the charismatic cricketer.

Quite expectantly, de Villiers was struck with awe. “It’s an amazing feeling when they chant my name. I look to put pressure on the bowlers. I’m human after all. If I get one or two away, I have momentum going my way,” AB de Villiers was quoted as saying in the post-match presentation ceremony.

“With the catch, I made it look tougher than it was. It curved away late, luckily it stuck. I got into a bad position. It’d be great to make the knockouts. Lot’s got to happen. We have to win the next game, then it comes down to run rates,” the middle-order batsmen added while describing the catch.

RCB have one match remaining against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Jaipur and they need to win the match in order to stay in contention for the playoffs. The Virat Kohli-led team is currently in the fifth position of the points table with six victories from 13 matches.

Here is RCB’s full squad

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