Mr. 360 in town

AB de Villiers, former South Africa captain and one of the most feared batsmen in international cricket during his playing days, arrived in Sylhet on Thursday morning to bolster beleaguered defending champions Rangpur Riders.

De Villiers has been contracted to play the last six matches of the group stage of the Bangladesh Premier League. Rangpur, led by Bangladesh ODI skipper Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, are in dire straits at the moment after having lost four of their first six matches, the latest being a 27-run defeat at the hands of Sylhet Sixers at the Sylhet International Stadium on Wednesday.

It will be the first BPL appearance for De Villiers, often called Mr. 360 because of his ability to utilise all angles present in a cricket ground while demoralising bowlers the world over.

If he can help Rangpur to the playoffs, the defending champions will try to keep him on for the knockout stage of the tournament.

Already featuring the self-proclaimed 'Universe Boss' Chris Gayle in their lineup, de Villiers addition makes Rangpur the side with the highest star quotient in the sixth edition of the BPL. It remains to be seen if that translates to performance on the field in their remaining six matches.

Rangpur play their next game against Sylhet on Saturday against Sylhet Sixers.