It has been a while since AB de Villiers’ return to South Africa National Cricket Team has been a topic of discussion among fans. The former Proteas captain had shockingly announced his international retirement in 2018. However, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) star continued to shine in T20 leagues worldwide and his heroics in the Indian Premier League over the years almost prompted a discussion around an international return. Last year, South Africa head coach Mark Boucher had said that De Villiers is in talks to break his retirement for the T20 World Cup 2020, which was eventually postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers and Harshal Patel ‘Chill’ Post RCB Training Session.

While many fans believed that De Villiers’ chances of representing South Africa again have gone with the postponement of the T20 World Cup, Boucher said the discussion is still on the table. "I did chat to him (AB de Villiers) before he went to the IPL. The conversation is still very much open," Boucher told reporters according to South Africa website timeslive.co.za. IPL 2021 Points Table Updated.

"AB, being the person he is, wants to perform very well at the IPL to prove to himself and everyone else that he is still a very key figure in world cricket and could dominate at that level," he added.

"I said to him: 'Go do your thing, and I’ll give you a shout towards the back-end of the IPL.' So that is where we are with him,” Boucher further revealed.

De Villiers, 37, started IPL 2021 with a bang, scoring a match-winning 48 off 27 deliveries to hand RCB a two-wicket triumph over defending champions Mumbai Indians. Hence, the veteran batsman still has the spark in him, and his addition to the South Africa squad for the T20 World Cup would be a massive boost for the Proteas team.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 16, 2021 10:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).