The 2020 edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) was scheduled to begin from March 29, but the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was forced to postpone the 13th season of the cash-rich league due to Coronavirus pandemic followed by the worldwide lockdown. Apart from IPL, many other bilateral series and domestic tournaments had also been cancelled because of the deadly COVID-19.
In the meantime, cricketers are heading towards social media platforms in order to interact with their fans and followers. Some are engaging in Q/A sessions while some are participating in live chat symposiums. Following the bandwagon, former South Africa skipper AB de Villiers joined famous cricket commentator Pommie Mbangwa for an Instagram live chat, in which the batting genius talked about the various aspects of the game.
De Villiers expressed that playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) is a great feeling. The Pretoria-born revealed he relishes the franchise, the vibe which comes along with it and the supporters.
“Obviously, playing for Bangalore for the first three-four years, going into your fifth year, I realised I would love to play here for the rest of my life. I really enjoy the franchise, the vibe, the people. You create friendships you don’t want to leave. Then I started feeling that I actually want to play for RCB,” said De Villiers.
During the chat, an interesting fan-question came up which said if De Villiers would like to play for one of the most successful teams Chennai Super Kings (CSK), captained by MS Dhoni. The veteran batsman responded and said he never had a chance to choose a franchise.
“Because of the system in the IPL, I’ve never had a choice. I have played with Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals), and then they released me after the first three seasons, after which Bangalore picked me up. The entire first part of my IPL career was out of my hands. Unfortunately, I don’t think the CSK thing is going to happen. It’s good to play against them, though. It’s always a great battle,” added the 36-year-old.
The dextrous Proteas batsman has so far played 154 matches in IPL and had stockpiled 4395 runs at a breathtaking strike-rate of 151.23. He has also scored three hundreds and 33 half-centuries in the lucrative league. De Villiers has smashed 212 sixes in IPL which is the second-most by any player.
