Flashback: When RCB signed AB de Villiers at the IPL auction on this day in 2011
On this day in 2011, history was made when the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) signed South African superstar AB de Villiers at the IPL auction.
After three seasons with the Delhi Daredevils (now known as Delhi Capitals), the franchise chose not to retain the swashbuckling batter. De Villiers was purchased by RCB for ₹5 crore and played 11 seasons for the franchise, achieving innumerable feats to cement himself among the stalwarts in IPL history.
RCB's social media handle took the opportunity to share their gratitude for the former Proteas captain by saying:
"When Superman, our first Hall of Famer joined the Red & Gold. On this day 13 years ago, we didn't just win the bid for AB de Villiers. We signed up for an era of unforgettable memories that we'll be forever grateful for!"
Despite retiring from the IPL after IPL 2021, De Villiers is still the sixth leading run-scorer in IPL history with 5,162 runs in 184 games.
The 39-year-old scored his runs at a sensational average of 39.70 and a strike rate of almost 152. Although the franchise never broke through and won an IPL title, De Villiers, in partnership with Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle, formed arguably the most fearsome trio of batting in the tournament.
During their period of dominance, RCB qualified for the final twice in 2011 and 2016.
"It came as a huge surprise to me a week or two later when I realised I had been released" - AB de Villiers
AB de Villiers recently made a staggering revelation on the Delhi Daredevils failing to keep their promise of retaining the star batter ahead of the 2011 IPL auction.
The 39-year-old enjoyed a terrific second season with Delhi, averaging over 51, but struggled the following season. De Villiers scored only 111 runs at a dismal average of under 16 with no half-centuries.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, De Villiers admitted being surprised at his release ahead of the 2011 auction.
"When I played in the 2010 season, I got called into the office and was told ‘you are going to get retained, young AB de Villiers’. I sat alongside David Warner in that meeting. It came as a huge surprise to me a week or two later when I realised I had been released. So the communication wasn’t great back in the day, that must be different these days but it’s not a nice feeling," said AB de Villiers.
Yet, the former South African cricketer expressed happiness at being picked by RCB, with whom he built several memorable moments.
"You’re unsure of your career, at that time in 2010 I think I only played five games in that IPL season so a lot of doubts crept up in my mind. But I did have a very good international season. I kept playing good cricket and luckily for me the auction happened and I got picked up by RCB. That changed my life forever, so great memories with regards to that," added De Villiers.
De Villiers joined Gayle as the first pair of players to be inducted into the RCB Hall of Fame earlier last year.