A team player, freakish hitter and inventive shot-maker... AB is cricket's Superman

SIMON HUGHES: AB de Villiers is the most complete batsman of the modern era. He is a player for all seasons and formats. He can adapt his game to any requirements

^{AB de Villiers' remarkable array of shots}

"It is not about earning more somewhere else. Its about running out of gas" were AB de Villiers' heartfelt words on announcing his retirement from international cricket. And, really, it is totally understandable.

De Villiers has played 420 international matches (as well as over 500 domestic games) That’s more than enough for two men. And basically AB de Villiers IS two men.

He is the most complete batsman of the modern era. He is a player for all seasons and formats. He can adapt his game to any requirements. As a result of his diverse sporting background he is completely ambidextrous and has total 360-degree range.

This is the guy who has the fastest one-day international fifty (16 balls) and fastest one-day hundred (31 balls) and yet also is capable of stonewalling for four hours for 33 runs (and no boundaries) to save a Test match against Australia.

^{De Villiers has retired from international cricket}

His batting against the Australians in the recent Test series was flawless in the first two games. The only way the Aussies got him out was run out at the bowler's end.

Furthermore, he is devoted to the team. In that sense he is everything Kevin Pietersen wasn’t. 

The intriguing thing about de Villiers is the way he marries his expertise in other sports into his batting. You can see his tennis skills coming through in his outrageous sweep of a low full toss over fine leg, sometimes one handed – like a top-spin passing shot picked up on the half volley – and the two-fisted backhand morphing into a reverse flick over third man.

His ability at golf - his handicap fell as low as one - is visible in the massive followthrough of some of the big hits, getting his hips through the shot to achieve greater momentum, the bat finishing up wrapped round his back like Rory McIlroy’s driver.

He creates shots like Shane Warne invented deliveries. And don’t forget the agility and panther-like qualities of his fielding derived partly from his brilliance in rugby. 

In this era of uber-specialisation, his varied sporting upbringing is a good antidote. Not only does it aid his hand-eye co-ordination and enhance his fitness, but such diversity allows someone to enjoy their main sport because it is not a job or just an extension of a series of drills but a proper expression of his dynamic skills.

It banishes apprehension, promotes fun and experimentation. Batting to him is almost like exploration. "Sport is 90 per cent about having confidence in your ability and strengths," he says. He is completely fearless. 

And yet his outrageous skills are rooted in a simple basic move - two little steps inside the crease just before the ball is released (not forward, but actually slightly back) - head still, body primed, and then ensuring he plays as many shots as possible in what he calls ‘the box’ - right under his nose, eyes lasered on the ball. Many other modern players have copied this method.   

He watches the game carefully before he goes in, assessing the bowlers and the conditions and the state of the match. He considers the shots he thinks are right for the situation. 

^{De Villiers is one of South Africa's best ever batsmen}

The innings he played the other day for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Sunrisers Hyderabad, which I happened to be describing on radio, was a microcosm of his supremacy and diversity. He took two sumptuous boundaries off his first two balls, the first a delicious back foot force through the offside off Sandeep Sharma, the second a glorious lofted off-drive.

He followed that with a couple of less sublime biffs over mid-on, then a calculated reverse paddle for four off the dangerous Rashid Khan. He made room to carve the seamers past point, then walked across his stumps and either pulled or swept them over deep square leg. He leaves the bowler with nowhere to go.

In despair, Basil Thampi tried a leg stump yorker, overpitched and De Villiers triumphantly despatched the knee high full toss 105 metres and clean out of the Chinnaswammy stadium. He had 63 from 33 balls. You run out of superlatives when you are commentating on the man. He has taken destructive hitting to nuclear levels.

Just for good measure he took a ridiculous one handed catch in that game, jumping up frog-like and reaching over the boundary to pluck the certain six out of thin air and then of course landing back inside the rope.

Really De Villiers is the cricketing equivalent of Superman. 

"It is everything or nothing," he said in his video address. For him it was always everything. And now, sadly, in international cricket anyway, it will be nothing.