AB de Villiers retires: Five unforgettable innings

NEW DELHI: South African superstar AB de Villiers has shocked the cricketing fraternity and his legion of fans by announcing on Twitter that he has retired from all forms of cricket with immediate effect on Wednesday, admitting that he is "tired" and "running out of gas". ALSO READ: ABD quits international cricket, 'tired' and 'running out of gas'
On that note, here are five of his most memorable innings across formats. (1.) 217* v India, 2nd Test, Ahmedabad, 2008The first of de Villiers' two Test double-centuries was an attacking 217 not out against India in Ahmedabad in April 2008, a match that South Africa wrapped up in three days. After Dale Stern put South Africa ahead by helping bowl India out for 76 on the first morning, de Villiers, in the company of Kallis, ground India's bowlers down before turning it on as he neared 200. He hit 17 fours and two sixes, the one which gave him his double-century a massive shot off Harbhajan that landed on the stadium roof. (2.) 149 off 44 balls v West Indies, 2nd ODI, Johannesburg, 2015In January 2015, in one of the most astonishing displays of hitting ever displayed, de Villiers broke the record for the fastest ever ODI hundred. Giving him company was Hashim Amla, who also registered a career-best 153. But de Villiers' brutality is what most people would remember the match for. He came out to bat at No. 3 after Amla and Rilee Rossouw put on a mammoth 247 for the first wicket. Rossouw cracked his maiden international century to set the foundation for a late surge. With just 11.3 overs left, de Villiers expressed himself right from the outset. With nine fours and equalling Rohit Sharma's record of 16 sixes, he reached the three-figure mark off just 31 balls before finally perishing for 149 in the final over as South Africa posted a humongous 439/2.(3.) 162* off 66 balls v West Indies, 2015 World Cup, SydneyFive weeks later, de Villiers stunned West Indies again. Where Amla (65), Faf du Plessis (62) and Rossouw (61) all were cut off, de Villiers surged to a scarcely believable 162 not out from 66 balls, striking 17 fours and eight sixes to set up a 257-run hammering of West Indies. During this innings, de Villiers' legend grew greater as he smacked the quickest ever 150 in ODIs at the SCG, driving South Africa to their highest World Cup score of 408/5. His innings beat Shane Watson's 83-ball effort against Bangladesh to make de Villiers the fastest batsman to reach 150. (4.) 119 off 61 balls v India, 5th ODI, Mumbai, 2015A must-win fifth ODI against the hosts in the cauldron of the Wankhede Stadium, the series level at 2-2. A blisteringly hot and humid day, which became utterly forgettable for MS Dhoni's team as Quinton de Kock (109), du Plessis (133) and de Villiers (119) pumped them to the tune of 438/4. When de Villiers strode to the crease, South Africa's score was 187/2 in 26.5 overs. Over the course of 61 balls faced, he smacked 11 sixes and three fours to be third out at 398/3 in 46.4 overs. It was brutal. (5.) 126* v Australia, 2nd Test, Elizabeth, 2018In his own words, this series-defining century is "one of my best ever". South Africa, in their own backyard, were 0-1 down and staring at a first-innings deficit in the second Test of the series. Not one to shy down, de Villiers took the attack back to the Australians with his unbeaten 126 off 146 balls to put the hosts in a position of dominance from which they went on to win by six wickets. This was de Villiers' first Test century in three years, and at the age of 34, reminded critics of what he could do.