PICTURED with Royal Challengers Bengaluru teammates Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis may have to accept the fall of the curtain on his international career. | AFP
OBAKENG MELETSE
THE Proteas will look to take a leaf out of the Springbok’s book when they once again attempt to break their World Cup duck in a month’s time. The squad didn’t lack any controversy but had a few big names from the Indian Premier League (IPL) missing.
Faf du Plessis plays and misses.
Through no fault of his own, the former South African captain missed out on what could have been his last chance to play for the Proteas in a World Cup. With age probably not on his side, he was right up there with the best in South Africa.
Du Plessis retired from Test cricket to fully focus on his limited overs game, and despite him scoring the second most runs in the 16th edition of the IPL, captaining the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, he was still overlooked for the Inbound tour in December 2023 against India.
With 50 T20I matches behind his name, and a most sought after name in the T20 game, Du Plessis has a wealth of experience and his leadership could have been vital with an inexperienced middle order.
Lizaard Williams’ call-up to IPL not enough.
The 30-year-old Titans pace man would have been optimistic about his chances, following a successful SA20 second edition where he picked up an impressive 15 wickets at an economy rate of 9.92 for the Joburg Super Kings.
Williams, currently on duty with the Delhi Capitals, would have been encouraged when he received a call-up to the IPL when Harry Brook pulled out of the tournament, but he will, unfortunately, not add to his eleven T20 Internationals.
Nandre Burger – still on the rise.
The Rajasthan Royals fast bowler had just the impact he wanted in his debut IPL season. His pace and bounce with the new ball troubled a lot of batters in the early part of the IPL on his way to picking up six wickets in four matches at an economy of 8.85.
In a summer that saw him debut for South Africa in all three formats, Burger would have been a high consideration, but could only make the team as a travelling substitute and even though he would have wanted more, this will be a good learning curve for him with still a lot of World Cup cricket for him to play for South Africa in future.
Rilee Rossouw needs to find the middle of his bat.
The elegant left hander has fallen down the pecking order with the rise of talented middle order options for the Proteas occupying all the spots. A disappointing SA20 campaign saw the Delhi Capitals’ batter score only 156 runs in 10 matches.
The 34-year-old scored his maiden T20 century for South Africa against India on his return to the national set-up following the end of a Kolpak deal he had with Hampshire since January 2017.
Related Topics: