I am in the best form of life right now, says AB de Villiers
What's the story?
AB de Villiers, who returned to Test cricket after a long sabbatical, did not show any signs of nerves and went after the bowlers from the word go, every time he stepped out to bat in the ongoing Test series between South Africa and India.
The 33-year-old, who scored 65 in the first innings at Cape Town, followed by a masterful 80 in Centurion, believes that he is in the best form of his life.
"I feel like I am in the best form of my life right now," de Villiers said. "Once again, I have touched on it earlier, that I am never guaranteed results, never guaranteed five hundreds in a row. I could get five ducks in a row but I am happy where I am at. And I am playing well and I am doing my preparation well and I am meeting the ball well, it is just up to the day to take care of itself. So I don't think like that and I feel at the best phase of my life right now", De Villiers told Cricbuzz.
In case you didn't know...
When the former South Africa captain took a break from the longest format of the game, many believed that his Test career was over. Moreover, the Proteas South started investing in Temba Bavuma to replace De Villiers in whites.
However, despite playing international cricket for 13 years, now De Villiers is feeling as fit as he had ever been and it is quite evident in his performance too.
The heart of the matter
Last year, during the ICC Champions Trophy in June, there were reports that De Villiers was suffering from a hamstring issue and needed time to recover from it.
It seems that the star batsman has recuperated and is in a good space as far as his fitness is concerned.
What’s next?
After taking an unassailable 2-0 lead, skipper Faf du Plessis and De Villiers have been quite vocal about their desire to beat India 3-0 to avenge their whitewash in 2015.
However, Virat Kohli and his men will try to salvage some pride in the final Test, which will be played at the New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg from Wednesday, January 24.
Author's take
AB de Villiers is a core member of South Africa's batting arsenal and with his contributions in the first two Tests of the three-match series, he has proved, yet again, that he is far from finished and has a lot of cricket left in him.