- Faf Du Plessis has been named as the new captain of RCB
- He was bought for 7 crores by the franchise
- The all-rounder has won 4 IPL titles with the CSK
The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), finally has a captain and it’s no other than one of South Africa’s great all-rounders, Faf du Plessis. The news has come after weeks of speculation of who would be crowned as the next of the franchise for the 15th edition of the league. It’s the first time Du Plessis has been given the responsibility to command a franchise in his IPL career.
Virat Kohli had stepped down from the team’s captaincy last year before the ICC T20 World Cup. When the corona disrupted IPL 2021 commenced in September in UAE, Kohli vocalized his decision to quit the leader’s role after the end of the Indian league and ICC tournament. Speaking about this new development in a video message the former skipper expressed his delight at the integration of Proteas player as the captain.
“I couldn’t be happier to pass on the baton to a good friend, someone I’ve known over the years. We’ve been in touch for many years now. He’s one of the few guys I’ve gotten to know a little bit more apart from the cricket. My partnership with Faf is going to be exciting,”
The all-rounder got sold for INR. 7 crore to RCB when the franchise successfully managed to outbid Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Plessis’ former franchise, and Delhi Capitals (DC). Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and Indian wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik were other contenders for this role.
Apart from Dhoni’s CSK, the 37-year-old South African has also represented Rising Pune Super Giants in the 2016 and 2017 versions of the league. With the former, he has won four IPL titles including the 2021 edition where he scored 633 runs for team yellow. In an interview, post the captaincy declaration, Faf said his first effort would be to get to know each player and build a relationship to create a culture. It’s what he has had learned from being a leader
“Having been a leader for a while, I’ve been on the journey for creating a culture, it’s close to my heart. First and foremost, my style will be a relational style. To connect with players and start to get to know everyone. The first part of my journey would be to build relationships, try and make sure what are the small things that make each individual tick and how to get the best out of them.”
Since Faf Du Plessis has mostly retired from playing for the Proteas, he will be available from the very start, unlike his other fellow country players who would be joining a little late due to national commitments. Team RCB will lock horns with Punjab Kings on 27th March in Mumbai.
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