AB de Villiers said he was ‘disappointed’ with his Man of the Match innings of 49 in the first T20 against Bangladesh.
When receiving his award, De Villiers said that on that surface in Bloemfontein he was hoping for ‘something like 70-plus’.
The star batsman struck 49 off 27 balls, with eight fours – a strike-rate of over 181 – in a partnership of 79 with Quinton de Kock after Hashim Amla had been dismissed with the score on 18. The Proteas went on to score 195-4, anchored by De Kock’s 59, and won the game by 20 runs.
‘We were pretty happy to get that partnership going at a crucial stage of the game.’
He is comfortable too, with his batting position at No 3 in the T20 format. ‘It works for me, especially coming in within the first six overs; you can really capitalise on it.
‘I believe in sitting on the sidelines assessing as much as I can, watching closely; seeing what shots were working, whether it is taking turn. When I came out, Quinny told me there was quite a bit of pace and bounce in the wicket, which is something we really enjoy.’
They were helped, too, by the tactics of the Bangladesh bowlers.
‘They tried a lot of different things in the first six overs. They were feeling the pressure a bit and they missed the mark quite a lot. I don’t think it was a slower-ball wicket, the first six overs we batted, and we were able to cash in on that. We didn’t have to try too much, just time the ball.
The great thing about coming in early is that you can set yourself a foundation and then really let go, which I didn’t do this time, which was disappointing.’
Photo: Frikkie Kapp/BackpagePix
