On June 3, just before the IPL 2025 final between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers shared an emotional moment. Later that night, after RCB claimed their historic first IPL title in an exciting contest, the two legendary players were seen together in interviews, celebrating the victory. However, this reunion was a long way off, as the two had not been speaking for some time.
In an interview with Cricket.com, de Villiers reflected on the mistake he had made the previous year, which he believed led Kohli to stop communicating with him for months. AB de Villiers shared how relieved he felt when Kohli began reaching out to him again earlier this year.
In a recent conversation, de Villiers opened up about Kohli’s retirement from Test cricket and whether he saw any similarities to his own decision to step away from the format in 2018. Reflecting on this, he mentioned that Kohli had only reconnected with him six months ago after a period of silence, which was caused by a misunderstanding in 2024.
“I know we were both going through similar experiences because we talked about it. He’s been in touch with me for the past six months, which I’m grateful for. There was a time not long ago when Virat and Anushka were expecting their second child, and I felt a bit of a footfall . So, I was really relieved when he started speaking to me again,” he explained.
“We all know he had a tough time, and he wanted to get some advice from me about how I handled certain challenges in my life. I understood the phase he was in, given his age, the number of matches he’s played, and the pressures of constantly being in the team, including the politics that come with it. There are a lot of factors that weigh on you, and so I shared my thoughts with him openly, based on what I had observed. I’m happy he’s still playing cricket, and his decision comes from the heart. I fully support him in that.”
In early 2024, Kohli had skipped the Test series against England due to personal reasons. De Villiers revealed Kohli and his wife, Anushka Sharma, were expecting their second child.
A few days later, the former South Africa captain said that he had made a big mistake.
“The information provided by me was wrong. Virat can take a break from cricket for family reasons. I hope he comes back stronger.”
Although, De Villiers was right as Kohli and Anushka welcomed their second child on February 15, 2024.