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AB de Villiers Sympathises with Yashasvi Jaiswal

2026-06-29 · AB de Villiers · Player Focus

AB de Villiers Sympathises with Yashasvi Jaiswal

AB de Villiers has voiced sympathy for Yashasvi Jaiswal after the young opener was again left out of India's ODI squad for the England series, despite a century in his most recent outing.

What happened?

The RCB legend acknowledged the harshness of the situation but said Virat Kohli's return from injury made the decision inevitable.

Jaiswal had been drafted into the squad for the South Africa ODIs as a replacement for the injured Kohli and seized his chance, smashing an unbeaten 110 off 86 balls to guide India to a comfortable chase in the final match.

Yet Kohli's return has once again pushed the 24-year-old to the sidelines.

Why it matters for AB de Villiers

De Villiers, speaking on his YouTube channel, framed the call as a reflection of the realities facing young players when established stars reclaim their places, even when the youngster has done little wrong on the field.

"Virat Kohli back. Little bit of a tough one on Jaiswal, who was back in Virat's place, scoring the hundred, and now he's got to make way," The South Africa icon said.

What comes next?

De Villiers continued, "No complaints there but it just a little bit harsh on players sometimes when your King comes back, when the main players come back, there is a process they are looking at,"

He added that the decision ultimately made sense, with Kohli needing game time to maintain the form he had shown during the IPL ahead of a busy international schedule.

So truly makes sense for Virat to step in there and make sure he maintains the kind of form he showed in the IPL, de Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

De Villiers also turned his attention to the wicketkeeping options, suggesting Sanju Samson was unfortunate to miss out after a strong recent run of form, with Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul preferred in the squad.

"Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul are the two top wicket-keepers. The big thing is, there is no Pant and no Samson. Samson must have been close, closer than Pant, as he had a really good IPL but also, before that, showed signs of form.

Not a lot of surprises there, but just for Samson, I feel he was close," de Villiers said.

The comments highlight the depth of competition in India's batting ranks as the team builds towards the 2027 World Cup.

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