AB de Villiers has set his sights on the India series to make his Test return.
The Proteas had to play a Test series against Australia, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and England without De Villiers, who took a break from the longest format due to constant injury hassles.
During this period the Proteas went on an unbeaten streak to help them climb to No 2 on the Test rankings, but this winning run was ended by a dominant 3-1 defeat in England. Looking to bounce back from this, SA will face Bangladesh in a two-match Test series, followed by a series against Australia.
Despite De Villiers’ absence from the Test side, he refused to rule himself out of contention for selection and brushed away rumours suggesting a complete absence from Test cricket.
‘The last 12 months have been very important to me. Just really finding my feet again. In a way pressing the reset button,’ said De Villiers on the Hindustan Times website.
‘It is not that I can just walk into the team. I have to work hard for it. I am prepared to work really hard to be selected to play against India.’
De Villiers also stepped down as captain of the ODI team.The 33-year-old, while announcing his availability for Tests, shockingly announced that he would step down as captain of the ODI side.
De Villiers said that he is happy about his decision and is raring to go ahead in the jam-packed schedule of the Proteas.
‘I feel happy in my life at the end of the day, having stepped down from ODI captaincy,’ he said.
‘I feel very refreshed, revived and ready to go again. I have very quickly realised that it (cricket) is the most important thing in my life.
‘I just want to enjoy the last few years of my career. Whether it is three to five to seven years, that I don’t know,’ said De Villiers.
De Villiers also showed admiration for the T20 format, singling out the IPL.
‘IPL has been an incredible experience for me and my family,’ he said.
‘I have enjoyed every second of my stay in the country and hopefully many more years to come. But cricket in South Africa will always take priority for me and I think it’s for any born South African.’
