Faf du Plessis has announced that he will no longer captain South Africa in the Test and T20I formats. The 35-year-old made the announcement via a statement on Monday morning. Quinton de Kock will now captain the Proteas in all three international formats, having already taken over from Du Plessis in One Day Internationals earlier in the year.
A new era for South Africa
Du Plessis' decision to step back from the captaincy marks the end of a seven-year spell in which he captained the Proteas 112 times across three formats. 69 of those matches ended in victory. While he will no longer assume the responsibility of leading the national side, there are no plans to step back from international duty. Du Plessis will also be in action for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL which gets underway at the end of March.
2020 is a hectic year in the cricket calendar, and the winds of change are blowing in South Africa. A disappointing campaign at the 2019 World Cup in England saw several key players bow out for the Proteas. Since then, there have been plenty of new faces in the squad as preparations ramp up for the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year. bet365 make South Africa 9.0 (8/1) to win the World Cup, an achievement that would be their first major trophy in a limited-overs format.
South Africa's Upcoming Fixtures
After a narrow loss to England in their latest T20I series, South Africa turn their attention to another of the frontrunners for the T20 World Cup, Australia. The pair will meet in 3 T20I matches in February before the tour continues into March with three One Day Internationals. Following the conclusion of that series the Proteas head straight to India for three ODIs to complete a hectic first quarter of 2020.
| Date |
Opposition |
Format |
| Friday 21st February |
Australia |
T20I |
| Sunday 23rd February |
Australia |
T20I |
| Wednesday 26th February |
Australia |
T20I |
| Saturday 29th February |
Australia |
ODI |
| Wednesday 4th March |
Australia |
ODI |
| Saturday 7th March |
Australia |
ODI |
| Thursday 12th March |
India |
T20I |
| Sunday 15th March |
India |
T20I |
| Wednesday 18th March |
India |
T20I |
Du Plessis' statement in full
“The last few weeks of rest away from the game have given me a lot of perspective on the great privilege and honour I have had in representing and leading my country in the three formats of this wonderful game. It has been a rewarding, sometimes tough and other times a lonely road, but I would not replace the experience for anything, because it has made me the man that I am proud to be today.
“When I took over the leadership, I did so with the commitment to lead, perform and most importantly, to serve. As the team heads into a new direction with new leaders and a young crop of players, I feel it will be in the best interests of South African cricket to relinquish the captaincy in all formats. This was one of the toughest decisions to make, but I remain fully committed to supporting Quinton, Mark and my teammates as we continue to rebuild and re-align as a group.
A Team in Transition
“After the 2019 ICC World Cup, I made the decision to continue in my role as captain while the team went through a rebuilding phase following the retirement of some key senior players and a complete overhaul of the coaching staff that we had worked with until then. It was important to me that I stayed to help the team find its feet and plot a new way forward while assisting in identifying the next generation of leaders within the players’ group during a time of turbulence in SA cricket. The last season of my captaincy has been the most challenging to date as I had a lot of off-field issues that I devoted my energy towards.
“I have strived to lead the team with dignity and authenticity during exhilarating highs and devastating lows. I have given my everything during my tenure. I have never been one to throw in the towel and do believe I am putting the team first and believe we have to stick through the tough times to get to the good times. In a perfect world I would have loved to lead the team in the Tests for the rest of the season as well as the T20 World Cup, but sometimes the most important attribute of a leader is to be selfless. I am healthy, fit, energised and motivated and certainly see myself playing an important role in the squad for as long as I continue putting in winning performances for the team.
Du Plessis has no plans to give up playing for his country
“South African cricket has entered a new era. New leadership, new faces, new challenges and new strategies. I remain committed to play in all three formats of the game for now as a player and will offer my knowledge and time to the new leaders of the team.
“Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who has supported me in my captaincy throughout the years – my wife and daughter, family, teammates, Proteas coaching staff, management and selectors, CSA Board and staff, friends and fans of South African cricket. It has been the greatest honour of my life to lead my country.”
