New South Africa test cricket captain AB de Villiers says the added responsibility will motivate him to do better. The 31-year-old batsman was put in charge of the side after Hashim Amla stepped down after the drawn match against England in Cape Town on 6 January. He will take charge of a side 1-0 down at the third test at The Wanderers in Johannesburg on 14 January.
De Villiers said: Im definitely more motivated by the added responsibility. Ive always enjoyed it throughout my career, I enjoy people doubting me – it sort of motivates me in a way to do better. The nice thing about captaincy is youre completely focused on the team and your personal performance is put aside, thats also a good thing more often than not.
De Villiers has scored over 8000 test runs at an impressive average of 51.52. Meanwhile, England captain Alistair Cook has said his side need to focus on their own game, as they look to win the series.
We spend our time focusing on what we can control, how we want to play, how we are going to get our 20 wickets in, how we were going to score the runs, all that kind of stuff. South Africa are a very strong side, and showed a lot of resilience in Cape Town, so theyll be trying to get back in the series, said the opening batsman.
England need just one win to complete their first series away win since India in 2011. However, they could be without opener Alex Hales, who has contracted a throat infection. South Africa will be without strike bowler Dale Steyn, who was ruled out of the third test due to injury.
