The world of cricket has seen a lot of sparkling stars over time and only a few of them have been brilliant captains of their respective national sides.
It’s just how the game is played, players are not able to attend to their performance with the responsibility that comes along as a captain.
The greatest players have messed up, either as a player or as a captain, and only a few have been able to survive the test.
There have been cricketing legends who have dominated the game with their skills and led their teams to World Cup glories.
Clive Lloyd, Kapil Dev, Ricky Ponting, MS Dhoni, are the few names that come to our minds whenever we think about some of the finest captains the world has ever seen.
In the current scenario, Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson, and Faf du Plessis stand out above the rest and have proven to their match-winning skills as players and captains alongside.
It is a blessing for any team to have a captain who understands the pressure of the game at different positions and the art of winning a game and for quite some time South Africa was led by one such captain.
After an unsuccessful run as a captain when Ab de Villers hung up his boots as the captain, Faf du Plessis stepped up to sail the ship to the shore.
Faf Du Plessis has been an incredible batsman over the years and his presence in the team is nothing less than a blessing for the Proteans.
Faf du Plessis’ exceptional batting prowess comes in handy with his experience and captaincy skills but the Captain moved on from the professional career after signing a Koplak deal with Lancashire only to return as the captain of a fiery South African side.
The ‘Captain Cool’ of South Africa has been quite effective as a captain and took the team to great heights under his leadership.
Lately, the position of captain has been under scrutiny and the disagreement between the Cricket South Africa board and Faf du Plessis might have been the reason for the board to appoint the new captain in ODIs and T20s.
The captain who has given everything to the team has been a hot topic in the cricketing news lately due to the rumors surrounding his retirement and the Test captaincy.
With Quinton de Kock appointed as the new captain, it is uncertain that Faf will be playing for the national team in the future.
The Cricket of South Africa board was keen on appointing a new captain who could lead the team in the 2023 World Cup as Faf du Plessis wouldn’t be around at that time.
The newly appointed captain, de Kock needs to invest some time as the captain in white-ball cricket and would want to captain the team under the guidance of former captain.
Faf Du Plessis, who has been an integral part of the South African team has led the team from the front and displayed some great cricketing knocks over the years.
Du Plessis’ calm and composed style of batting made him the essential fit as a great batsman in the top order as well as the middle order.
Faf Du Plessis’ ability to score in the toughest of conditions and consistent form has been an able asset in steering his side to victory in high-pressure run chases. Du Plessis is a brilliant white ball cricketer but his Test debut came after a long wait.
The long gap was worth the wait as a coveted career-defining knock under immense pressure by Faf defined the moment against Australia and it was the start of his era in Test matches.
An integral part of the Big three (Hashim Amla, Ab de Villiers, Faf du Plessis), he took over as the captain after his school-friend Ab de Villiers gave up captaincy after an unsuccessful run.
Following a disastrous run in the Champions Trophy in 2017, Ab de Villiers passed on the captaincy to Faf and since then, the team has been led gracefully by the Protean.
Faf du Plessis’ run as a captain has been fabulous for South African team and they wish to continue their brilliant performance under the newly appointed captain, Quenton de Kock but the fans will be hoping that Faf du Plessis doesn’t bail on the team and continue his run as an extravagant player.
What about the Test captaincy?
Even though the South African Cricket Board has appointed Quenton de Kock as the new captain in the shorter formats of the game, but they don’t have any say in the Test captaincy.
Faf du Plessis, who will be leading the team in the fourth and the last test against England, is not sure what fate has in store for him and the South African cricket board will decide according to the player and the team’s performance in the England series.
The rumors around the captain have questioned the player’s future and revolve around the retirement plans but hopefully, this is not it for the South African batsman.
South African team hasn’t seen much success in the Test series against England, but the captain has still managed to shine and rise above the rest.
To keep the team in the competition, Faf du Plessis has been effective in keeping the players together and played the cards accordingly.
The team would hope that the player sticks around after the England series and continue as the captain of the Test team.
Graeme Smith, former South African opener and currently acting director of South African cricketing board said, “At the moment Faf is in that position but I need to sit with him post this Test series. He has got a bit of time because he is being rested from the one-day series so we will have some time to have a robust discussion on his future. He is the South African Test captain. The next Test match we play after this series will be in the Caribbean – there is an extensive amount of time. I need to understand how he sees his future in the game.”
What has the Cricketing board got to say about their decision?
The Cricket South Africa Board clearly stated that they need to focus on the smart captaincy tactics and prepare a new candidate for the 2023 World Cup as Faf will be not around at that time.
The Cricket board wanted to appoint a new captain in white-ball cricket as the World Cups are around the corner and there needs to be a tactical shift in the mentality as well as the functioning of the team.
Faf du Plessis has been a brilliant captain of the Proteans but the team needs a shift and the appointment of Quenton de Kock as the captain will bring in a smart street technique.
“We see Faf playing a role as a player but from a leadership perspective, we felt the need to move on,” Graeme Smith justified the board’s decision to appoint Quenton as the captain. “Faf doesn’t see himself being around in 2023. Leadership has been an issue of late in South African cricket and we have decided to give Quinny an opportunity.
We feel tactically he is good, there are areas of his leadership that we all know we need to grow and develop but he is the right guy at this stage to take the one-day side forward.”
What will be Faf’s role in the team?
The South African Cricket board hopes to have Faf du Plessis in the team as a player and the guiding force that holds them together.
Faf has been integral in South Africa’s success as a cricket team in all the roles he has played, be it a batsman, captain or an unorthodox bowler.
Du Plessis bolted off as one of the finest players of South Africa, and he along with Ab de Villiers and Hashim Amla have taken the teams to newer heights.
The team would expect the batsman to continue showcasing his prowess as a wonderful batsman and has scored 5507 runs in 143 matches at an average of 46.67 in ODI matches.
The team requires experience and Faf du Plessis comes with a lot of it and Quenton de Kock would need guidance as a captain so that he can grow along.
Faf du Plessis as a batsman has a bigger role in the team than he had as a captain and South African fans would like to see him exhibit his skills and talent.