HashimAmla stepped aside as South Africa’s Test captain with immediate effect on Wednesday, a day after scoring a spectacular double century, which rescued his country from a possible defeat in the second Test against England.
The 32-year-old made the surprise announcement just minutes after the Test at Newlands ended in a draw and after Amla had led a fight back to haul his team from a precarious position.
AB de Villiers will take over as captain for the last two Tests against England.
Naturally this decision is not an easy one but the more I think about it the more I believe I can be of greater value to the Proteas as a fully focused batsman and senior player at this time or rebuilding our team.
HashimAmla
Amla said he had been considering quitting over the last fortnight, even before the start of the series against England and the loss of the first test by 241 runs in Durban last week.
Amlacaptained South Africa for 14 tests with four wins, six draws and four defeats. South Africa, despite being the top-ranked Test side, have not won in their last eight Tests sketching back to more than a year and Amla’s form has also suffered during this period.
