Faf du Plessis has been dominating T20 tournaments all around the world. Picture: Ron Gaunt, BackpagePix
Gqeberha – Faf du Plessis keeps strengthening his case for selection in the Proteas white-ball set up.
Although new Proteas white-ball coach Rob Walter hasn’t ruled out Faf du Plessis from his plans, his inclusion in the team will come at a cost.
Reeza Hendricks has been in good form opening the batting with Quinton de Kock and Du Plessis’ inclusion will mean one of Hendricks or De Kock would have to make way, disrupting the balance that the team is building under new captain Aiden Markram.
The most important question is – is it worth the risk?
Du Plessis has been dominating T20 tournaments all around the world and has made himself difficult to ignore for the national selectors and the new coaching staff.
Since making his debut for Royal Challengers Bangalore last year, no other batter has scored more runs for the franchise, including former captain Virat Kohli.
Now in his second season as RCB captain, the 38-year-old has already scored two half-centuries in three matches, with his second fifty coming up against Lucknow Super Giants on Monday.
He struggled to get going early on in his innings and at one point, he was on 33 off 31 balls whereas his opening partner, Kohli (61 off 44), found it a lot easier to keep the run-rate healthy.
When Ravi Bishnoi came on to bowl, Du Plessis turned up the heat and went on the attack, adding 46 runs from the next 15 deliveries he faced.
He took a liking to Bishnoi’s mystery spin and hit him for a 115-metre six, the biggest in IPL history.
He finished unbeaten on 79 off 46 and further added to the evidence that proves he is still one of the best batters in white-ball cricket.
Du Plessis is a batter first, then a leader, in whatever team he plays for. But his leadership qualities make him standout even more.
Those leadership qualities were on full display at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Monday.
During a heated exchange with Kohli, Du Plessis made a calm and rational decision, going against Kohli’s call for a no-ball review from a short-pitched delivery from seamer Avesh Khan.
Game by game, Du Plessis is proving himself as a complete package who could still add value to the Proteas white-ball set-up.
@imongamagcwabe