Pollock Reflects on De Villiers' Ascension in South African Cricket

Former South Africa all-rounder Shaun Pollock recently spoke highly of ICC Hall of Famer AB de Villiers, praising his exceptional ability to handle pace and bounce on the cricket field. Pollock recalled their first encounter and admitted that de Villiers had left a lasting impression on him, making him believe that the talented batter was truly "something special".

De Villiers was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame last week alongside England opening great Alastair Cook and Indian women's spin legend Neetu David.

de Villiers has played 114 Tests, scoring 8,756 runs at an average of 50.66, and 22 centuries. He has played 228 ODIs with 9,577 runs at an average of 53.50, with 25 centuries. He has an average of 26.12 in the T20Is with 1,672 runs in 78 games.

Able to score around the ground with a full array of shots against all types of bowlers, De Villiers is regarded as both one of the most innovative and destructive batters in the modern game and a deserved member of the ICC Hall of Fame. De Villiers made a lasting impact during a 14-year international career, scoring more than 20,000 international runs across all three formats, while also being revered as one of the greatest fielders to grace the game.

In a video by ICC, Pollock said that even before he had made it to the national side, there were "murmurings" about the batter within Proteas cricket and the first time they played against each other was a practice match.

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"He was opening the batting for Northerns. As a player who has played for many years. you are always looking for cues as to who is going to be successful and why are they going to be successful. And I think in South Africa it's the ability to deal with pace and bounce. Just bowling to him on that day I realized this is going to be something special," recalled Pollock.

Pollock said that if one wants to copy batting technique of someone, they should look no further than De Villiers as his technique was "compact".

"He was so nicely balanced, his head was in a wonderful position and he took the bat so nicely back and straight. Even at the point of delivery, he kind of had a little bit of a rock which gave that extra time to be able to deal with anything that was thrown at him," he added.

Pollock said that during his iconic 'Pink Day' century against West Indies back in 2015, which is the fastest ODI ton coming in just 31 balls, De Villiers, dressed in pink, showed the world his entire "repertoire" of shots and what he was capable of.

"During the Pink Day 100, where he kind of said to the coach that 'I do not think I should go next and they pushed him out the door and he went on to break a world record and he almost got to that 150 at an unbelievable time on that day. He kind of put everything out there. He displayed the full repertoire, what he was capable of and just put that rest in the bowling line up under the immense pressure," added Pollock.

In that match, "Mr-360" as he is known, made 149 in just 44 balls, with nine fours and 16 sixes, taking SA to a massive 439/2. WI was restricted to 291/7.

Pollock lauded De Villiers for doing well regardless of the formats, including the Indian Premier League , where his stints with Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru gave him a massive fanbase in India. He is the seventh-highest run-getter in league history, with 5,162 runs in 184 matches and 170 innings at an average of 39.70, with three tons and 40 fifties. His best score is 133*.

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