AB de Villiers

“It's important on any English wicket to leave well.”

“You represent your country - that's the biggest honour ever. I had the privilege of doing that for more than 14 years.”

“I'm not a nice guy on the field, and I've never really respected a guy who's been a 'nice guy' on the field. I want opposition to be hard, to play to win the game for their team.”

“To cross the line for the team, to have an impact on winning the game - that's why I play this game.”

“I accept that it is not always moonshine and roses, and you can't expect things must always go your way.”

“Obviously, international cricket is the main cricket you want to play, especially Test cricket.”

“I watch the ball, and I just play. I have always said that I don't feel there's a big difference between the three formats. It is just a mindset, applying yourself to the wicket and conditions, and that's always been the way that I have played.”

“Winning an official World Cup with the South African team had become my burning ambition.”

“It's not really part of the game to say, 'Oh, it's a batter's game; it's a batter's game' - I don't know why it goes on. It's a beautiful game that's greatly competitive between bat and ball.”

“The fear of failing... not quite the fear of failing, but the uncertainty of whether you are going to perform or not, is there every single game I have played in my life. It will always be there.”

“I like to entertain the crowd. Personally I like to entertain my team-mates first, but when the crowd gets going, it is amazing.”

“Every wicket you play on is different.”

“The main lesson I learned from 2015 is that a World Cup doesn't define a player's career.”

“I love keeping. I'm in the game all the time. I see angles that I wouldn't normally see, and I feel part of what the captain does.”

“It would not be right for me to pick and choose where, when, and in what format I play for the Proteas.”

“There are big tournaments going on around the world, and some of them you cannot ignore because, financially, they make a huge difference in our lives.”

“Playing at the highest level alongside your friends, scoring runs for your country are things that I look back and go, 'Ah, I miss that a little bit,' but there's a lot I don't miss. I don't miss 90 per cent of it.”

“I don't care about hundreds, fifties, averages.”