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SOUTH African cricket coach Mark Boucher said on Tuesday he was disappointed that AB de Villiers had decided not to make an international comeback.

De Villiers’ decision was revealed earlier in a statement by Cricket South Africa in announcing a squad to tour the West Indies next month.

“Discussions with AB de Villiers have concluded with the batsman deciding, once and for all, that his retirement will remain final,” the statement said, without giving any further details.

There had been widespread speculation that De Villiers, 37, would make himself available for the T20 World Cup, scheduled for India in October and November.

“AB has his reasons, which I respect,” Boucher told The Citizen newspaper in Johannesburg. “Unfortunately he’s no longer in the mix. I say unfortunately because I think we all agree that he’s still one of the best – if not the best – T20 players in world cricket.”

Boucher said De Villiers had expressed concern about taking the place of a player who had been part of the system since he retired from international cricket in 2018.

“But as a coach I needed to try and get our best players, for the team and the environment. AB is an energy-booster in any environment, but I respect his reasoning. It was worth a go, but now let’s move forward,” said Boucher.

De Villiers said last month that he would make a decision based on his form and fitness. He had a good campaign for Royal Challengers Bangalore before Covid-19 caused the tournament to be halted. — SuperSport