At the IPL 2022 mega auction, the Challengers paid Rs 7 crore for the South African star, who had spent nearly a decade with CSK.
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Sunil Gavaskar praised Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) decision to name South African cricketer Faf du Plessis as captain for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, stating the South African veteran’s leadership experience will benefit the former finalists. RCB named Faf du Plessis as Virat Kohli’s successor on Saturday, kicking off the IPL 2022 season. At the IPL 2022 mega auction, the Bengaluru-based franchise paid Rs 7 crore for the South African star, who had spent nearly a decade with Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Following his retention by RCB, speculation was rife that Glenn Maxwell might be considered for the captaincy role. Bengaluru, on the other hand, handed over the reins to du Plessis at a glittering ceremony on Saturday.
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Sunil Gavaskar told Star Sports that Faf du Plessis has a lot of experience leading the national team, citing how he brought the players together and helped the Proteas reach the top of the world cricket rankings. Between 2013 and 2019, the 37-year-old captained South Africa in 36 Tests and 39 One-Day Internationals.
“Loads of captaincy experience, loads of leadership quality you see in Faf du Plessis. I am not surprised at all. Remember, he took South African cricket ahead. There was a time in South African cricket when there was a bit of turmoil. He managed to get the team together and get South Africa right up to the top. Clearly, a terrific decision by RCB to hand over the captaincy to Faf du Plessis,” Gavaskar said.
“Big shoes to fill (AB de Villiers’ absence), no doubt about that. Faf du Plessis will open the batting. He would want to lead from the front, show the way. These are exciting times for RCB,” he added.
Virat Kohli may have handed over the captaincy, but the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) team will need his energy at every stage of their IPL campaign, according to newly appointed skipper Faf du Plessis. The four-time IPL champion for CSK was unveiled as RCB captain on Saturday, taking over from their longest-serving captain, Virat Kohli, who took over ahead of the 2013 season.
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“Even with him (Kohli) not being the captain, that energy he brings to himself and to the team is hugely important for us. We’ll try and use that as best as we can,” Du Plessis said in a virtual media interaction. “His (Kohli) performance as a cricket player has been probably one of the greatest, so huge respect for what he’s done not only with the bat in his hand but also in captaincy perspective, he’s changed Indian cricket.”
