Kohli shares a great camaraderie with de Villiers as they both play for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League.
The 30-year-old has been rested for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Bangladesh beginning November 3. Rohit Sharma will be leading the side in his absence.
"He will be skipping the T20 series as he has been playing non-stop and needs a break considering that he has been part of the Australia series, the IPL, the World Cup, the tour of West Indies and now the series against South Africa.
Managing the workload of the players, especially those playing all formats, is something that is a priority with this team to ensure that the players are fresh and on the top of their game at all times," a source in the team management had said.