Published 12:45 IST, February 17th 2020
AB de Villiers turns 36: RCB superstar's top 5 IPL innings of all-time
Over the course of his IPL career, the RCB and ex-Delhi superstar has scored 4395 runs and is statistically, one of the most successful batsmen in the tourney.
- SportFit
- 3 min read
Andrew Benjamin de Villiers (AB de Villiers) has been not just one of world cricket's biggest superstars but has also made it big in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The trendsetting South African batsman has not been able to get his hands on an IPL trophy yet but his efforts have managed to get his team close on more than one occasion. On his 36th birthday, we are going to take a look at AB de Villiers' top five IPL innings.
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AB de Villiers birthday: South African star's best IPL innings
47* off 17 balls against Deccan Chargers, 2012
This masterclass from AB de Villiers came in 2012 when RCB were chasing the Chargers' 181 at Bengaluru. RCB were in a tough spot after losing Dilshan for 71 in the 16th over with 65 runs still needed. De Villiers took the responsibility on himself and smashed Dale Steyn for 23 runs in the 18th over to get RCB to needing just 16 off 12 balls. De Villiers took apart Anand Rajan in the next over and RCB finished the match in just 18.5 overs.
105* off 54 against Chennai Super Kings, 2009
After Virender Sehwag won the toss and Delhi batted first, De Villiers made his maiden IPL century and helped Delhi get to a competitive 189 runs. Despite Matthew Hayden's efforts for Chennai, Delhi ended up successfully defending the total. In his innings, De Villiers hit five fours and six sixes.
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79* off 47 against Gujarat Lions, 2016
It was the first Qualifier of the 2016 IPL and RCB were chasing the Lions' 159. After openers Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli were removed cheaply, De Villiers was RCB's last hope at making it to the final. RCB were 6-68 after 9.4 overs and it looked like the Gujarat Lions were on their way to the IPL finals. AB de Villiers was still at the crease though and the Proteas legend played a composed knock by smoking sixes and fours at critical times. RCB ended up winning the match by four wickets with ten balls remaining in their innings.
133* off 59 against Mumbai Indians, 2015
This inning saw AB de Villiers come out to bat the Wankhede and form a world record partnership with Virat Kohli. Kohli and De Villiers broke Adam Gilchrist and Shaun Marsh's record for the highest partnership for any wicket in T20 cricket. Putting 215 runs up for the second wicket, De Villiers made 133 of them with 19 fours and 4 sixes. RCB got to a massive total of 235 and defeated Mumbai by 39 runs.
129* off 52 against Gujarat Lions, 2016
Arguably de Villiers' most epic IPL knock, this century gave Virat Kohli the confidence to strike his third IPL 2016 hundred in the same innings. Kohli and ABD broke their own partnership record from a year ago and put on 229 for the second wicket. De Villiers took merely 43 balls to reach his hundred and smoked 12 sixes to hand RCB a win over the Lions by 144 runs.
Updated 12:45 IST, February 17th 2020