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ICC World Cup 2019: We had to be fair to the team, says CSA’s Selection Chief; Ab de Villiers responds
According to the recent reports, Ab de Villiers who wanted to be a part of World Cup 2019 was denied the spot in the team.
Ab de Villiers, one of the greatest batsmen in the World and South Africa’s most reliable batsman retired from all forms of international cricket in May 2018. The player retired exactly a year before the commencement of this big tournament. However, there were reports by ESPNCricinfo that the stalwart batsman offered the management to reverse his retirement and play the WC tournament. He made this revelation 24 hours before the selection of the 15 player squad for the tournament. However, according to the reports, the selectors turned down his decision without even considering it once as it would be unfair to the other players in the team. However, Linda Zondi, Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) selection chief, released an official statement in which he stated, “I pleaded with AB de Villiers not to retire in 2018,” Zondi was quoted as saying. “Although there was a perception that he was picking and choosing when to play - which was not true - I did give him the option to plan and monitor his season to get him to the World Cup fresh and in a good space. We made it clear that he would have to play during the home tours against Sri Lanka and Pakistan to be considered for selection, instead he signed to play in the Pakistan and Bangladesh Premier Leagues respectively. He turned down the offer and said he was at peace with his decision to retire". Zondi further mentioned, “For Faf du Plessis and Ottis Gibson to share AB’s desire to be included in the squad on the day we announced our World Cup squad on April 18th was a shock to all of us. AB left a big vacuum when he retired, we had a year to find players at franchise level to fill the gap. We had players who put in the hard work, who put up their hands and deserved to be given the opportunity to go to the World Cup. The decision was based on principle; we had to be fair to the team, the selection panel, our franchise system and players. At no point in the year that he had retired did he make himself available for selection. It was no option when I received the news on the day of the squad announcement, our squad was finalised and confirmed. AB is undoubtedly one of the best players in the world, but above all else, we have to stay true to our morals and principles, there is no regret in the decision.” Ab de Villiers retirement has surely hampered South Africa’s batting line-up. The team lost all their initial 3 matches in the World Cup 2019 tournament. Villiers responded to the news by tweeting, “All that’s important is that we should all focus on supporting the team at the World Cup. There is a long way to go and I believe the boys can still go all the way #ProteaFire.”
It will be crucial for the South African team to focus on their next match against West Indies on June 10.
