Former South African cricket captain and arguably the country's finest ever one-day player AB de Villiers offered to come out of retirement to play for the struggling Proteas at the Cricket World Cup - but was turned down by team management.
An explosive report on respected website espncricinfo.com claims de Villiers approached the team last month, shortly before the 15-man squad for the event was announced.
The 35-year-old retired from international cricket in May last year after a career including 9577 runs in 228 matches at an average of 53.50. He also holds the world record for the fastest hundred - his knock of 149 runs against the West Indies in January 2015.
De Villiers was a key figure in the South Africans' World Cup campaign just a month later, a campaign that ended in heartbreak when New Zealand's Grant Elliot hit a six off the penultimate delivery of the semi-final to send the Black Caps into the title decider.
