• Home
  • Match Hub
  • Ab De Villiers 41 Pulls Off Jaw Dropping Relay Catch In Wcl To Dismiss Yusuf Pathan

AB De Villiers, 41, Pulls Off Jaw-Dropping Relay Catch In WCL To Dismiss Yusuf Pathan

Akshita Patel

AB de Villiers shows off athleticism at 41 in WCL [Source: @worldchampionshipoflegends/Instagram]AB de Villiers shows off athleticism at 41 in WCL [Source: @worldchampionshipoflegends/Instagram]

AB de Villiers may have retired from international cricket years ago, but the South African legend proved in the WCL 2025 that he still has magic left in him. In a sensational moment, the 41-year-old pulled off an unbelievable relay catch with Sarel Erwee that left fans speechless and Yusuf Pathan walking back to the pavilion.

South Africa Champions, batting first, had 208 runs on the board courtesy of a blazing inning from de Villiers and JJ Smuts. However, in the chase, India Champions saw a collapse, losing 4 wickets at just 28 runs.

AB De Villiers Turns Back Clock With Sensational Catch

In the ninth over of India’s innings, Yusuf Pathan tried to smash leg-spinner Imran Tahir over wide long-on. AB de Villiers, fielding near the boundary, timed his leap perfectly and caught the ball mid-air. 

But realising that his momentum would take him over the ropes, he made a lightning-fast decision and tossed the ball mid-air to his teammate Sarel Erwee before stepping out of bounds. 

WCL's IG Post [Source: @worldchampionshipoflegends/Instagram]WCL's IG Post [Source: @worldchampionshipoflegends/Instagram]

Erwee completed the catch with ease, but all credit went to de Villiers for his quick thinking and stunning athleticism. 

Fans were quick to acknowledge the effort and lauded ABD’s fielding skills, that too at 41 years of age.

De Villiers Also Starred With Bat

Earlier in the game, AB de Villiers had already shown he wasn’t just here for the fielding highlights. He top-scored for South Africa Champions with a blistering 63 off 30 balls, smashing 3 fours and 4 sixes. 

His knock powered the Proteas to a massive total of 208/6 in 20 overs. Contributions from Hashim Amla (24), Jacques Rudolph (22), JJ Smuts (30), and JP Duminy (16) added to the scoreboard pressure. 

India, in response, struggled badly. Despite Yusuf Pathan and Piyush Chawla picking up two wickets each earlier, their batting fell apart. At 111/9 in 18.2 overs, floodlights malfunctioned, and South Africa were declared the winner as per the DLS method.