De Villiers will be new South Africa ODI captain

Tuesday, 7 June 2011 00:29 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters - AB de Villiers will be South Africa's new limited-overs captain, incoming coach Gary Kirsten announced at a news conference on Monday.

Graeme Smith will continue as test captain, having relinquished the reins in one-day internationals and Twenty20 cricket after the World Cup.

"This is an exciting and great time for AB and he has proved his worth with his fine performances in all formats," Kirsten, who will formally take over in August ahead of the two home series against Australia and Sri Lanka, said.

De Villiers is the world's second-ranked batsman in ODI cricket and has recently taken over the wicketkeeping gloves from veteran Mark Boucher.

"I'm very excited but I'm also inexperienced. But I've learnt a lot the last seven years from an unbelievable captain," De Villiers, who has never captained a team at first-class level, said.

"It's a big responsibility, but there'll be a fresh look in the side, which is good.