By: Bheki Kunene

AB de Villiers was named South Africa‘s Cricketer of the Year at the glittering Cricket South Africa Awards in Sandton on Wednesday night.

The Titans player became the eighth player to win the prestigious award. He joined the list that includes Jacques Kallis, Makhaya Ntini, Shaun Pollock, Dale Steyn, Greame Smith, Hashim Amla and Vernon Philander. He scooped all but one of the awards he was nominated for on the night, winning four in total.

He was also named Castle Lager Test Cricketer of the Year, SA Players’ Player of the Year and SA Fans Cricketer of the Year. He was a deserving recipient of these awards because of the great form he has had this year in all forms of the game. It is in Test cricket where he’s been more prolific with his single digit score last made in 2012.

De Villiers paid tribute to retired Greame Smith and Jacques Kallis when he received the awards.  He said that he was looking forward to another season albeit without two of the most influential players for the team over the last ten years but was hopeful that the current players would take the team forward.

Quinton de Kock piped de Villiers to the Castle Lager ODI Player of the Year. The 20-year-old prodigy won the award after scoring four hundreds at the top of the order in the period under review, including three against India in consecutive games. Imran Tahir walked away with the Blue Label Telecoms T20 International Player of the Year.

The Sunfoil Dolphins were the biggest winners in the domestic professional category.  Lance Klusener won Coach of the Year while David Miller won the Ram Slam T20 Player of the Tournament.  The Durban-based franchise also won the CSA Fair Play Award and ground curator at the Sahara Stadium Kingsmead, Wilson Ngobese was named CSA Groundsman of the year.

Kyle Abbott won the Domestic Players’ Player of the Year for the second time in a row and the SACA Mos Valuable Player Award.

“It was a well deserved award for Kyle after another great season for us, he high work rate stands him head and shoulders above the rest,” said his teammate Cody Chetty.