Quotes from AB de Villiers

An IPL match may be decided when the ball passes inches beyond the grasp of a fielder on the boundary or when a direct hit catches a batsman inches short of the crease.

I know what makes me good, and it's not a bat.

Playing at the highest level alongside your friends, scoring runs for your country are things that I look back and go, 'Ah, I miss that a little bit,' but there's a lot I don't miss. I don't miss 90 per cent of it.

For my part, I am not a great believer in bad luck on the cricket field, in business - in fact, in any walk of life.

It's never easy to lose. But life is not all sunshine and roses.

I like to entertain the crowd. Personally I like to entertain my team-mates first, but when the crowd gets going, it is amazing.

If you pick up that information, the first metre or two, the ball coming out of the hand, you can analyse what's coming.

It would not be right for me to pick and choose where, when, and in what format I play for the Proteas.

I have always wanted to play at the top of the order.

I will always be grateful to the coaches and staff of Cricket South Africa for their support through all these years.

I will continue to be the biggest supporter of Faf du Plessis and the Proteas.

It was a bit of a surprise when the national captaincy came my way.

I watch the ball, and I just play. I have always said that I don't feel there's a big difference between the three formats. It is just a mindset, applying yourself to the wicket and conditions, and that's always been the way that I have played.

I try and watch the ball closely. I've played the game for many years now, and I know my talent will take over if I just watch the ball and enjoy myself out there.

I was brought up to always see the glass half full instead of half empty and played my cricket that way.

I have played incredible knocks with the lightest of bats.

We all grow up dreaming of playing international cricket.

We want to swing the ball as much as we can. We try and get it to reverse, putting more sweat on one side and things like that. But we don't cheat.

In my heart, international cricket is the way forward. That's where you want to play; that's where the pressure really lies. That's where you make your name.

For some guys, playing for the team will mean achieving more personally.

If you don't learn, especially if you are not playing well, then you are not going to move forward as a team.

My personal goals have always and will always take a backseat to the team.

It's always been about the team; it's never been about myself.

The interests of the team must always outweigh the interests of any individual, including me.