South African legend AB de Villiers has played for Royal Challengers Bangalore for a long time in the popular Indian franchise tournament IPL. Although they had long been regretting a title. De Villiers did not miss the moment when Virat Kohli’s team became the first champion in this IPL. He is also an equal partner. However, at the beginning of the IPL, the former Protea star had a bad experience in another franchise.
Initially, Delhi Capitals was called Delhi Daredevils. De Villiers played three seasons in the IPL since its inception in 2008. He recently commented that he spent his time with some ‘cancerous’ and ‘poisonous’ people. Although he did not say who those cricketers or coaching staff of Delhi were, de Villiers expressed his strong anger.
The legendary South African and Bengaluru batsman said, ‘I hate to even tell you their names. But Delhi Daredevils was a slaughterhouse back then. I am telling the truth. There were many corrupt people here, but there were also many legendary cricketers. That is why I had a bittersweet time in that franchise, I remember that time very well. “I also had some significant moments in my career there, where I had stars like Glenn McGrath and Daniel Vettori as teammates.”
De Villiers did not forget to share happy memories with legendary cricketers, a person like ‘McGraw’, against whom I played a Test match in 2006 and I hardly got a chance to breathe at that time. I did not get a chance to talk to him at all at that time. Later in 2008, in the same team (in the IPL), we sat next to each other and he said to me – “I like the way you play”. At that time, my feeling was – what is happening to me!
“Along with such high happiness, I also encountered some cancerous characters. I don’t think it is necessary to name them. So my three seasons in Delhi were a mixed bag of happiness and sadness. I didn’t get that much support during that time,” added de Villiers.
The Protea star played 28 matches in three seasons for the Delhi franchise. Then he joined Bangalore in 2011. De Villiers played in the Bangalore jersey until his retirement in 2021. Despite not winning the title in a long decade, he became a legend of the franchise with his on-field performance. In 2025, Bangalore became the champion of the IPL after a long wait of 18 years. Then Indian star Kohli mentioned de Villiers as one of the contenders for this title.
