“You could do things our minds were not ready to process” – Virat Kohli hails AB de Villiers as Proteas legend is inducted into ICC's Hall of Fame

Team India batting star and former captain Virat Kohli congratulated former South Africa and Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter AB de Villiers on being inducted into ICC's Cricket Hall of Fame for the year 2024. De Villiers was inducted into the prestigious group of players on Wednesday, October 16.

Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers share a very special bond, with their friendship dating back to 2011 when the Protea batting legend joined Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The duo were the backbone of the franchise's batting line till de Villier's retirement before the 2022 IPL season. Together, the duo have scored 3123 runs when batting together in the IPL, which included 10 century partnerships.

On Wednesday, AB de Villiers, alongside England batting legend Alistair Cook and India Women's ace spinner Neetu David, were inducted into ICC's Hall of Fame. Kohli congratulated the batter in a letter which was posted by the ICC on their official website. The letter read:

"It is an honour to be selected to write these words as you enter the ICC Hall of Fame. You are thoroughly deserving of your place – after all, the Hall of Fame is a representation of your impact on the game, and yours has been truly unique. People have always spoken about your ability, and rightly so. You are the most talented cricketer I have played with, the absolute number one.

"But what truly stood out to me was your belief in that ability. You had a crazy amount of belief that you could execute whatever you wanted to on a cricket field, and you normally did. That is why you ended up being so special."

The 35-year-old also recalled AB's knock against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2016, stating that he had the most fun batting with him on the field. He said:

"In the first over Narine bowled after the timeout, I was ready at the non-striker’s end thinking you were definitely giving me a single. So, imagine my surprise when you back away to the leg side, Sunil follows you and you slog sweep him over square leg for a 94-metre six! I don’t know what happened in the timeout to give you the belief you could do that. I just remember saying to you, 'you’re a freak!'

"If I have a lack of belief against someone, I’d just try and get off strike – but you hit him for a 94-metre six without picking the ball. That sums you up. You could just do things our minds were not ready to process, and then everyone thinks ‘How the hell did that happen?’.That is just one of so many fond memories I have batting alongside you, times which provided some of the most fun I have had on a cricket field."

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"It all comes back to that belief in your ability" - Virat Kohli about AB de Villiers batting

Kohli had high praise for the former Protea captain's batting skills. Talking about how good his batting was across situations, he added:

"It all comes back to that belief in your ability. It wasn’t just about the crazy, extravagant shots. You had the ability to defend the ball and had belief in that defence. To play that way because South Africa needed you to do so is a classic example of the team player you were.

"A lot of players can have impressive numbers but very few have an impact on the psyche of those watching. For me, that is the highest value you can have as a cricketer and that is what makes you so special."

In the end, Kohli congratulated de Villiers on being inducted into ICC's Hall of Fame and stated that he was "one of the greatest players to ever play the game."

AB de Villiers had an illustrious cricket career, scoring 20,000 runs across formats for South Africa in a career spanning 14 years. He announced his retirement from international cricket in 2018 and played for a few years in the IPL before retiring from the sport in 2021.