Bangalore will be without regular captain Kohli for at least the initial phase of the Twenty20 tournament as the India skipper recovers from a shoulder injury that forced him to miss the series-sealing final test win over Australia in Dharamsala.
De Villiers was set to lead the side in Kohli's absence but the South African was ruled out of the team's opening game of the season on Wednesday.
De Villiers missed the final of South Africa's domestic one-day tournament last week with a back injury.
"AB de Villiers has travelled well," RCB coach Daniel Vettori said in a statement. "However, he still has some minor discomfort and we felt that couple of days off would be best before we have him back in action.
