By Mark Gleeson CAPE TOWN, (Reuters) – AB de Villiers described his appointment as captain of South Africa’s test team as the fulfilment of a life-long dream but it will raise further questions about the burden on the team’s outstanding player. De Villiers was handed the captaincy following Hashim Amla’s decision to stand down after the drawn second test against England on Wednesday. “I’ve said this before that it is an incredible honour to captain South Africa in any format. The captaincy has obviously come at short notice and is the realisation of a lifelong dream,” De Villiers, already South Africa’s one-day international captain, said in a statement. De Villiers, who turns 32 next month, will lead South Africa into the last two tests against England, starting next week in Johannesburg, and is favourite to get the job long-term, coach Russell Domingo said. That, however, will only rekindle the debate over the workload on one of the world’s most talented batsmen, who plays an important role for his country in all formats of the game. De Villiers was last week forced to deny newspaper reports he was ready to quit the test arena to better balance time with his young family and cricketing commitments, which also include playing in the lucrative Indian Premier League. He played as wicketkeeper in the first test against England in Durban, which South Africa lost by 241 runs, in order to allow the selectors to pick an extra batsmen but after a poor performance he quickly gave back the gloves. Cricket South Africa said it would look at ways to give him time off but have now thrust a new responsibility on to his shoulders. “At the moment my priority and focus is placed on leading this team to what can be a memorable series win against England,” De Villiers said. “This test squad is motivated and determined to turn our performances around and I’m looking forward to taking up that challenge as captain. Hashim is a good friend and close colleague and I am grateful for his support.” Amla sprung a surprise with his decision, which came just one day after he scored 201 to help drag his team back from the cusp of losing a second successive test to England. He said he felt there were better candidates to lead the team and wanted to concentrate on his batting. (Editing by Ed Osmond) 

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AB de Villiers Biography

Abraham Benjamin de Villiers, also known as Mr 360, what can be said about him? AB de Villiers has grown to become one of the world's best batsmen. When in form, de Villiers is deadly with a capital D.

The South African possesses the knack of tearing into any bowling attack. AB de Villiers has the capability of giving bowlers nightmares for days on end. At a young age, every selector had their eyes trained on him alone. He was soon rewarded with a berth among the Proteas at the age of 20 in 2004.

In his Test debut at home against England, he almost single-handedly rescued South Africa from the jaws of defeat. In the same series, he smashed his maiden Test century. With that, the legend of AB de Villiers was born.

However, a year later, like most players, a slump in his form plagued him. But he combatted that with an astounding 217 against India. In the process AB de Villiers set a record as the first South African to smash a double ton against India.

Ab de Villiers possesses a mainstream attacking game, he complements that with a back-and-across trigger movement and a late-block in his defensive arsenal. Aside from that, he tends to play in accordance with the situation and conditions as well.

However, he is not invincible, if an elbow surgery in 2016 is any proof. As a result, he made an appearance in only one Test series all year. Following his recovery, AB de Villiers returned to the limited-overs formats, but avoided Test cricket to 'lighten his workload'.

<img class="size-full wp-image-152513 aligncenter" src="http://www.essentiallysports.com/wp-content/uploads/Screen-Shot-2019-04-03-at-12.05.12-AM.png" alt="AB de Villiers" width="465" height="349" />

IPL Career

With regard to the IPL AB de Villiers is a fan favourite in any city. De Villiers has been in the IPL right from its inception in 2008. During that time, he was with the Delhi Daredevils.

But he truly announced himself to the world when he joined the Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2011. He still delivered handsomely for Delhi, courtesy a 105 against the Chennai Super Kings.

He was let go by Delhi in the wake of a poor 2010 season and RCB pounced immediately. They nabbed him for a whopping 1.1 million dollars and they were going to make Delhi regret their decision to drop him.

Since then, AB de Villiers has proven his money's worth for Bangalore. The big-hitting South African formed a dangerous triumvirate with skipper, Virat Kohli and Jamaican star, Chris Gayle. He ended up as the leading run-getter for RCB for three seasons.

IPL 2019 Expectations

Now, AB de Villiers has stuck around with the Royal Challengers for yet another season. The team are desperate for a maiden IPL triumph inspite of boasting the strongest batting line-up ever. He has achieved a high score of an unbeaten 133* back in 2015 at a strike rate of 175.08.

AB De Villiers

AB de Villiers Biography Abraham Benjamin de Villiers, also known as Mr 360, what can be said about him? AB de Villiers has grown to become one of the world&#8217;s best batsmen. When in form, de Villiers is deadly with a capital D. The South African possesses the knack of tearing into any bowling attack. AB de Villiers has the capability of giving bowlers nightmares for days on end. At a young age, every selector had their eyes trained on him alone. He was soon rewarded with a berth among the Proteas at the age of 20 in 2004. In his Test debut at home against England, he almost single-handedly rescued South Africa from the jaws of defeat. In the same series, he smashed his maiden Test century. With that, the legend of AB de Villiers was born. However, a year later, like most players, a slump in his form plagued him. But he combatted that with an astounding 217 against India. In the process AB de Villiers set a record as the first South African to smash a double ton against India. Ab de Villiers possesses a mainstream attacking game, he complements that with a back-and-across trigger movement and a late-block in his defensive arsenal. Aside from that, he tends to play in accordance with the situation and conditions as well. However, he is not invincible, if an elbow surgery in 2016 is any proof. As a result, he made an appearance in only one Test series all year. Following his recovery, AB de Villiers returned to the limited-overs formats, but avoided Test cricket to &#8216;lighten his workload&#8217;. IPL Career With regard to the IPL AB de Villiers is a fan favourite in any city. De Villiers has been in the IPL right from its inception in 2008. During that time, he was with the Delhi Daredevils. But he truly announced himself to the world when he joined the Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2011. He still delivered handsomely for Delhi, courtesy a 105 against the Chennai Super Kings. He was let go by Delhi in the wake of a poor 2010 season and RCB pounced immediately. They nabbed him for a whopping 1.1 million dollars and they were going to make Delhi regret their decision to drop him. Since then, AB de Villiers has proven his money&#8217;s worth for Bangalore. The big-hitting South African formed a dangerous triumvirate with skipper, Virat Kohli and Jamaican star, Chris Gayle. He ended up as the leading run-getter for RCB for three seasons. IPL 2019 Expectations Now, AB de Villiers has stuck around with the Royal Challengers for yet another season. The team are desperate for a maiden IPL triumph inspite of boasting the strongest batting line-up ever. He has achieved a high score of an unbeaten 133* back in 2015 at a strike rate of 175.08.