Former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batsman AB de Villiers It has been revealed that Virat Kohli tried to convince him not to retire from franchise cricket before retiring from the game in 2021.Speaking on TOI Sports’ Mumbai Sports Exchange podcast, de Villiers said Kohli had tried hard to change his mind but had decided that it was the right time to move on. “Yes. He tried,” de Villiers said when asked if Kohli tried to stop him.The South African great retired from international cricket in 2018 after helping his team defeat India and Australia at home. He continued to play franchise cricket, including representing RCB in the Indian Premier League (IPL), before retiring from all formats in 2021.“I left international cricket (in 2018) when I wanted to. We beat India and Australia at home and I left in a very high mood.”“Then I decided to go on to play some T20 tournaments, travel around the world with my family, take them to the IPL, to England for the Blast, to Australia for the Big Bash and a few other tournaments. When I finally felt ready, I called it a day (2021 is also franchise cricket).”De Villiers said that retiring from the IPL was not a sudden decision and he had been thinking about it in the final season.“It takes time. The idea was in the back of my mind for the last season or so. Eventually, I just walked up to Virat and said, ‘I’m done’,” de Villiers said.De Villiers also spoke about the pressure of playing in front of a packed crowd at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium, where fans chanted his name.“It can also be exhausting. These moments can also bring sleepless nights. It’s not all sunshine and roses. There are difficult moments too. The expectations and pressure you put on yourself can be suffocating at times. I’ve talked about this before. I’m incredibly proud of what I’ve accomplished. But I often have trouble sleeping before big games. I’m so focused on making an impact for the team that I find it hard to be myself. So it’s not always easy,” de Villiers told TOI Sports’ Mumbai Sports Exchange podcast.Looking back on life after retirement, he said that even for the greatest players, the joy of success does not last long.“Of course, I miss those moments. It’s an incredible feeling when things go well and the crowd helps me get into that zone. But success wears off quickly. Every champion will tell you the same thing. You win the biggest trophy and an hour later you’re already asking yourself, ‘What now?’“
