Abraham Benjamin de Villiers, well known as AB de Villiers, is a South African cricketer who played an enormous role as a top-order batsman. He was one of the top batsmen in the world and also had prominent in Wisden Cricketers of the Decade at the end of 2019, former captain of the South African cricket team, and a valuable player in the Royal Challengers Bangalore team. Here are 10 things you might not know about this ABD.
AB de Villiers was born in Bela-Bela.
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| Royal Challengers Bangalore by flickr |
AB de Villiers, the son of Abraham B de Villiers and Millie De Villiers, was born on February 17, 1984, in Bela-Bela, South Africa. His father was a doctor who played rugby union in his youth. He has two elder brothers who are Jan de Villiers and Wessels de Villiers.
AB de Villiers is well educated.
If you know de Villiers only by cricket, you know few about him. He was educated in the Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool, along with one of his teammate Faf du Plessis. As a young man, he won a national medal from world-renowned Nelson Mandela for his science project. Of course, that's not all, he held six school swimming records in South Africa. However, de Villiers is not only a talented cricketer but also a gifted academic, a good lesson for young children who are only involved in cricket.
AB de Villiers played his first match against England.
AB de Villiers made his debut match in the first match of five-match TEST series against England on December 17, 2004. It was a 5 match TEST series, and the first match was played in Port Elizabeth. In that match, AB de Villiers scored 28 off 47 balls in the first innings and 14 off 21 balls in the second inning. However, the South Africa team had lost that match. South Africa won only their third match of the tournament, and in that match, AB de Villiers scored 21 off 38 balls in the first innings and 10 off 8 balls in the second inning. England had won two matches in the tournament, and in the end, they became the winner of the tournament.
World Cup in 2015 was a big tournament for AB de Villiers.
2015 World Cup was a remarkable day for AB de Villiers. Did you know that the fastest half-century, the fastest century, and the fastest 150 were scored on the same day and by one person? It was the 19th match of the World Cup where de Villiers achieved those three records in a single inning by ending the scoreboard as 162 off 66 balls. He scored the fastest half-century by 16 deliveries, fastest century by 31 deliveries, and fastest 150 by 64 deliveries. His valuable inning consisted of 8 sixes and 17 fours and ended with 162 not out. If there were few overs remaining, he would score the fastest two hundred with an unbelievable record. Chris Gayle holds the fastest two hundred with 138 deliveries.
AB de Villiers is known as the Mr.360.
There are different angles to hit on the field, but the players who use them all are rare in cricket. To some extent, Ab de Villiers is a player who can play shots anywhere he wants. He handles his footwork well for that. It is a bit difficult for the bowler to set up fielders for him as he searches for gaps and strikes through them. That is the reason why he is known as Mr.360.
De Villiers won ICC ODI Player of the Year three times.
Before naming the ICC ODI Player of the Year in 2020, there are two players who have won the award the most number of times, one of which is de Villiers. De Villiers has won it three times in 2010, 2014, and 2015. De Villiers is a player who was capable of giving unimaginable scoring goals for opponents.
De Villiers is one of the richest athletes in South Africa.
De Villiers's net worth in 2020 is nearly $20 million. He earns a lot of money by participating in limited-overs leagues around the world, and also he endorses auto companies like Audi and fashion brands like Puma so that he can earn some extra money outside the cricket.
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