AB de Villiers is not one to hold back his thoughts. Especially when it comes to Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
After RCB’s dramatic six-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants in a high-scoring match at the Ekana Stadium, the South African legend hit out at IPL 2025 commentators for what he felt was unfair treatment of the RCB bowling unit.
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The game saw LSG post a massive 228/3 on the back of Rishabh Pant’s unbeaten century. It eventually ended in RCB chasing the total with 8 balls to spare.
But even as the result tilted in RCB’s favour, de Villiers was not impressed with the tone of commentary during LSG’s innings. He called it negative, repetitive, and out of touch with the actual conditions.
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What did AB de Villiers say on negative IPL commentary against RCB?
Speaking on his YouTube channel, de Villiers said how frustrated he was by the commentary during the match.
"I listened to the commentators last night, and honestly, it got me so angry. They were so negative when we were bowling. They kept saying, ‘RCB’s bowling is under pressure… Once again, an in-form team is starting to lose momentum.’ But what about this - maybe it was just a really good batting wicket, guys?" said de Villiers.
He criticised the panel for jumping to conclusions without proper analysis of the pitch and match situation.
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De Villiers played 11 seasons for RCB and remains a fan favourite. He believes the team’s bowlers are often unfairly targeted due to old narratives.
"It’s lazy to keep saying, 'Here we go again. The bowlers are failing, they’re useless,' without properly analysing what’s happening on the field," he added.
He admitted there were some lapses in execution but felt the criticism ignored the overall quality of the pitch and LSG’s fluent batting. He argued that RCB were never out of the contest and proved that by chasing down the total convincingly.
De Villiers also praised RCB’s team culture. He said the current squad looks healthier than ever.
"What excites me most this season is that multiple players are stepping up, not just one or two. It’s not just the usual Virat Kohli or, back in the day, a Chris Gayle," he concluded.