The 35-year-old De Villiers retired from international cricket in 2018 but has been plying his trade around the world in various T20 leagues, including the Mzansi Super League and more recently, the Big Bash League in Australia.

On Tuesday, De Villiers scored 40 runs from 32 deliveries during his Brisbane Heat debut, which the team from the East of Australia beat the Adelaide Strikers at the Gabba.

The 2020 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will be played in Australia from 18 October to 15 November this year, and following his innings on Tuesday, De Villiers indicated that he would consider coming out of retirement for the tournament.

“There is a lot that needs to happen before that becomes reality,” said the multitalented De Villiers.

“I would love to. I've been talking to Mark Boucher, Graeme Smith and Faf du Plessis back home, we’re all keen to make it happen.

“It's a long way away still, and plenty can happen. There’s the IPL coming up, I've still got to be in form at that time.

“So I'm thinking of throwing my name in the hat and hoping that everything will work out.

“It's not a guarantee, once again. I don't want to disappoint myself or other people, so, for now, I'm just going to try and keep a low profile, try and play the best possible cricket that I can and then see what happens towards the end of the year.”

In 2019 there were suggestions that De Villiers would take a sabbatical from his international retirement in order to play in the ICC World Cup in England and Wales. The then Proteas coach, Ottis Gibson, was opposed to the idea from De Villiers making a return at the expense of another player.

De Villiers, Boucher, Smith and Du Plessis were all teammates for the Proteas. Boucher is currently the Proteas head coach, while Smith will act as the Director of Cricket up until the Indian Premier League.

The last time De Villiers represented South Africa in international cricket was during the 4th Test against Australia at the Wanderers in March 2018. De Villiers scored 69 and 6 to help the Proteas to a 492 run victory over the Baggy Greens.

@MorganPiek OFM Sport