"There were lots of poisonous characters" - AB de Villiers' startling claim on Delhi Daredevils stint post IPL 2025

Former South Africa cricketer AB de Villiers made a stunning revelation about the Delhi Daredevils (now renamed to Delhi Capitals) team during the initial seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The ace wicket-keeper batter began his journey in the IPL through the Delhi-based franchise, before moving onto the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), where he had an iconic stint.

Delhi Daredevils had roped in the explosive Proteas player for $300,000 during the inaugural IPL auction. The franchise had assembled a star-studded squad that included names like Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Dinesh Karthik, and Glenn McGrath.

AB de Villiers scored only 95 runs in six matches in the inaugural season as the franchise made it to the semi-finals, before being eliminated by the eventual winners, the Rajasthan Royals (RR). The South African had a stunning second season in 2009 playing in his home turf and scoring 465 runs at an average of 51.67, but a similar fate as the earlier season awaited the team.

Delhi were once again eliminated in the semi-final stage, this time by the Deccan Chargers. Instead of going one step further in the next season, the franchise failed to qualify for the semi-finals.

AB de Villiers admits that his stint with the Delhi Daredevils remains a bittersweet prospect to revisit due to the 'poisonous' characters in the team.

“I would hate to give you names. Burning people, you know. But Delhi Daredevils were in shambles. I mean, it was. There were lots of poisonous characters in that side," de Villiers said in an interview with Cricket.com

“Lots of legends. So it's such a bittersweet moment for me because I speak… I remember it fondly. And some of the highlights of my life and career was there, spending time with the Glenn McGrath and Daniel Vettori. That's where we got close. But these guys were my heroes and I was so scared of them growing up. So from those highs to also realising that there were some cancerous characters inside and no need to mention names, So it was a very bittersweet three years for me. Also wasn't backed as I would have liked to," he added.

Across three seasons with the Delhi Daredevils, AB de Villiers only managed to get 28 appearances. He scored 671 runs for the team at an average of 31.95, and a strike rate of 117.31.

"Told I was going to be retained, and in the next minute, I see I'm in the auction" - AB de Villiers

Ahead of the 2010 season, the Delhi Daredevils retained only Virender Sehwag. The franchise had plans to keep hold of de Villiers as well, but changed their minds at the last minute and released him back into the playing pool.

AB de Villiers admitted that he did not play his best cricket at times, but at the same time, bemoaned the lack of assurance from the management regarding his place in the playing XI.

"I enjoyed Shippy (Greg Shipperd) as the coach from New South Wales, that coached there, and he backed me a little bit, but also I didn't perform as well as I wanted to, but I never felt like I was going to get more than three games, for instance. And for a youngster, it's a tough situation to be in," de Villiers revealed.

“2009 was nice. I played almost the entire season there in South Africa, came back, I thought I was going to be the man. All of a sudden, not playing again. So it was really mixed feelings. Told I was going to be retained, and in the next minute, I see I'm in the auction. I didn't know what even happened. So weird things happened," he added.

RCB secured AB de Villiers' services for INR 5 crore at the mega auction, marking the beginning of a very fruitful relationship that is well intact to this day. The legendary player was inducted into the RCB Hall of Fame, a couple of years back, cementing his legacy after a decade-long stint.