AB de Villiers breaks silence on IPL comeback speculation

Former South African batting star AB de Villiers on Sunday ruled out any chances of reversing his retirement to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL), stating that the tournament is very long and requires a three-month commitment, something he is not ready for at his age.

Speaking on a YouTube podcast, when asked whether he would consider making a comeback to the IPL like MS Dhoni, who continues to play at the age of 44, de Villiers dismissed the comparison, saying:

“I’ll be too nervous. I think I’d rather just support. I’m a very good supporter. The IPL is just very long, and it’s a three-month tournament. It’s a really big commitment for someone at the age of 41,” de Villiers said.

The former cricketer last featured in the IPL in 2021, humorously added:

“You can’t compare me to Dhoni. I work a lot harder. I had a lot more hard work through the years… I’m just kidding. Hats off to them. But we’re all different. I gave it my best shot, and I’m happy.”

De Villiers also expressed his delight at the continued support during his recent stint in the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025.

“We had a ground called Northampton, County Cricket Club, and as I arrived, there were a lot of RCB fans. I immediately picked up the chants. It was very cool to hear that again.

"Obviously, RCB are the current champions of the IPL, finally, for the first time, I am very happy to say that. It’s great to hear the chants even here in the United Kingdom,” he concluded.

For the unversed, De Villiers’s unbeaten century muscled South Africa Champions to thrash Pakistan Champions by nine wickets and win the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025 title here at Edgbaston on Saturday.

Chasing a daunting 196-run target, the Proteas comfortably knocked the winning runs for the loss of just one wicket and 19 balls to spare, courtesy of de Villiers’ batting masterclass.

The right-handed batter smashed 12 fours and seven sixes on his way to an unbeaten 120 off 60 deliveries, which was his third century in the WCL 2025.

He was involved in a one-sided 72-run opening partnership with Hashim Amla, who fell victim to Saeed Ajmal on the final delivery of the batting powerplay, scoring 18 off 14 deliveries.

Duminy, who struggled in the early phase of his innings, eventually got going and ended up scoring an unbeaten 50 off 28 deliveries, laced with four fours and two sixes and thus lent ample support to de Villiers during their match-winning 125-run partnership.

For Pakistan Champions, only Ajmal could pick up a wicket, while the rest went wicketless.