Published 13:35 IST, December 15th 2019
Mark Boucher reveals he might pursue de Villiers to make comeback for T20 World Cup
South Africa national cricket team head coach, Mark Boucher has hinted that he might ask former South Africa skipper AB de Villiers to come out of retirement
- SportFit
- 3 min read
Just a day after being appointed as the head coach of the South African national cricket team, Mark Boucher has hinted that he might ask former South Africa skipper AB de Villiers to come out of retirement. de Villiers who continues to play for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League (IPL) had retired from all forms of international cricket in 2018 citing heavy workload. However, ABD has proven to be an ace player for the South African side as he scored 9577 runs in ODIs and 1672 runs in T20s across his career.
'He is one of the best players'
As de Villiers continues his stint with franchise T20 cricket across the leagues in the world, the former Proteas skipper might add extra value to the South African side for the upcoming T20 World Cup in 2020.
While speaking to ESPN, Boucher said, "Going into the World Cup, you want your best players to feature in your squad. If I feel he is one of the best players, why wouldn't I want to have a conversation with him? I have just got the job. I might have conversations with quite a few players and see where they are."
The newly-appointed head coach also added that the team needs its best players when it comes to the World Cup and if there are a few issues that need to be resolved with the media and the teammates and if it is good for the national side then why not do it?
'He will bring the toughness required'
Newly-appointed CSA acting director, Graeme Smith on Saturday said that he has brought in Boucher as the Head Coach because he feels he will bring the 'toughness' required to turn a young and inexperienced South African squad into a battle-ready outfit. Smith said, "With his experience of a long career as an international cricketer he has first-hand experience of what it takes to succeed in the Test arena."
The South African squad has been unable to strike chords as the Proteas have lost their last 5 Test matches with two of those coming as an innings defeat against India. Furthermore, Smith added, "There is a clear need to maintain continuity and stability in the Proteas management team and we will be retaining the technical support staff along with Volvo Masubelele continuing as team manager and Justin Ontong as fielding coach."
Updated 14:27 IST, December 15th 2019