AB de Villiers World XI excludes Sachin, Rohit, surprises fans

The World Championship of Legends 2025 has already delivered several headlines, and the clash between India and South Africa on July 22 at Northampton’s County Ground was no exception. South Africa, led by AB de Villiers, batted first and posted a strong 208/6 in their 20 overs.

AB de Villiers was the star of the show with a blistering 63 not out off 30 balls. India, chasing a revised target of 200 under the Duckworth-Lewis method, collapsed and suffered a massive 88-run defeat.

De Villiers’ All-Time World XI Raises Eyebrows

In a post-match moment that caught everyone’s attention, AB de Villiers revealed his All-Time World XI in a video shared by presenter Shefali Bagga on Instagram on July 23. The South African legend surprised many with his choices.

β€œπ‘°π’•β€™π’” 𝒂 π’•π’†π’‚π’Ž π’ƒπ’–π’Šπ’π’• 𝒐𝒏 π’…π’π’Žπ’Šπ’π’‚π’π’„π’†, π’‘π’†π’“π’‡π’π’“π’Žπ’‚π’π’„π’†, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒆𝒓 π’„π’“π’Šπ’„π’Œπ’†π’•π’Šπ’π’ˆ 𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒔,” π’”π’‚π’Šπ’… 𝒅𝒆 π‘½π’Šπ’π’π’Šπ’†π’“π’”.

Opening the batting are Graeme Smith and Matthew Hayden, both known for their aggressive starts. At number three, he slotted in Ricky Ponting, followed by Virat Kohli at number four.

The middle-order featured modern legends Steve Smith and Kane Williamson, occupying the fifth and sixth positions. At number seven and donning the gloves is India’s own MS Dhoni.

The bowling attack packs a punch with speedsters Mitchell Johnson and Mohammad Asif, while the spin department features two of the game’s greatest – Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne. As a bonus, Glenn McGrath was selected as the 12th man.

No Place for Tendulkar or Rohit

The exclusion of Indian greats like Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma, and Rahul Dravid from the squad raised plenty of eyebrows. Even Jasprit Bumrah, one of the top modern pacers, was left out.

β€œπ‘° 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒐 π’Žπ’‚π’Œπ’† π’”π’π’Žπ’† π’•π’π’–π’ˆπ’‰ 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔. π‘»π’‰π’Šπ’” π’•π’†π’‚π’Ž 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒔 π’Žπ’š 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 π’„π’‰π’π’Šπ’„π’†π’” 𝒂𝒏𝒅 π’Žπ’†π’Žπ’π’“π’Šπ’†π’”,” 𝒅𝒆 π‘½π’Šπ’π’π’Šπ’†π’“π’” π’†π’™π’‘π’π’‚π’Šπ’π’†π’….

Surprisingly, no players from England or the West Indies made the cut, further fueling debate among fans and pundits.

AB de Villiers’ World XI

Graeme Smith, Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting, Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, MS Dhoni (wk), Mitchell Johnson, Mohammad Asif, Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne.
12th Man: Glenn McGrath

Also Read: The Three Major Losses That Led to Virat Kohli’s Exit as Captain

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