De Villiers, who had been rumoured to be on the verge of retirement from Test cricket amid concerns about his workload, quashed any such rumours in the wake of South Africa's seven-wicket defeat at The Wanderers.
Faced with an inspired spell of bowling from Stuart Broad, who claimed 5 for 1 in ten overs after lunch, South Africa crumbled to 83 all out in their second innings. The result confirmed the end of South Africa's reign as the No.1 Test team, and may just have galvanised South Africa's new Test captain to stick to his guns and lead a side in transition out of their current malaise.
"I was never thinking of leaving Test cricket at all. I was just to find a way to rest a little bit throughout the year," de Villiers said after the match. "Lots of thoughts have been crossing my mind but this [defeat] has got absolutely no influence on that."
"Playing on the cricket pitch has never been an issue for me, it's just a matter of keeping myself fresh. It's really tough to stay on top of your game if you play up to 12 months a year. I just have to try and find a balance to keep my fight going and keep that skill level up."
South Africa's skills may have been lacking in the decisive third Test, and the absence of several key members of their team - Dale Steyn, Vernon Philander, JP Duminy and Quinton de Kock, not to mention a specialist opening batsman - cannot have helped. However, de Villiers believes the team still has plenty raw materials with which to rebuild their fortunes.
No Comment