AB de Villiers might soon play for South Africa again
The Proteas head coach Mark Boucher has time and again talked about the possibility of AB de Villiers scripting a comeback, ever since he has taken over the post. In a recent statement, he advised AB de Villiers to make himself available for selection before June 1. He also put the spotlight on Imran Tahir and Chris Morris, whom he termed as "free agents".
AB de Villiers was ignored for the Australia T20I series
The 36-year-old was not picked for the T20I series against Australia last month. Earlier, he featured in the Mzansi Super League and Big Bash League 2019-20 "The big one is the IPL so we decided to let those guys - the free agents if you want to call them that - do the IPL and then afterwards make themselves available," Boucher said.
South Africa have been devoid of their core players
South Africa have missed the services of their marquee players across formats of late. While they had a huge void to fill after the retirement of AB de Villiers, Dale Steyn's prolonged injury impacted the already dejected South Africa post World Cup 2019. Imran Tahir, who has already retired from ODIs, will look to make an impact in the IPL.
AB de Villiers wanted to play the World Cup
Following South Africa's crushing defeat to India in the tournament opener, AB de Villiers issued clarifications about his retirement. According to his statements, he made last moment efforts to join the squad ahead of the World Cup. Although he offered to come out of retirement, his proposal was rejected by the management as it would have been unfair on the young lot.
Players need to be available for selection post IPL: Boucher
"We've still got quite a few games before World Cup. From June 1, which is the Sri Lanka tour, those guys need to make themselves available. Whether we select them is another story. But they need to make themselves available for a spot," Boucher added.
AB's comeback would be crucial for the Proteas
Having showing tremendous form in the recent domestic T20 leagues, the 360-degree batsman would want to replicate his form in the upcoming IPL edition. He was retained by RCB in the IPL 2020 auction. Coach Mark Boucher would be monitoring AB's IPL campaign closely as his comeback could bolster the South African squad for the World Cup T20 2020.
