Faf du Plessis announces retirement from Test cricket
Faf du Plessis announces retirement from Test cricket
Veteran South African cricketer Faf du Plessis on Wednesday announced retirement from Test cricket. The 36-year-old represented the Proteas for 69 Test matches and scored over 4,000 runs in the format.
“It has been an honour to play for my country in all the formats of the game but the time has come for me to retire from Test cricket,” Faf wrote in his retirement post.
The middle-order batsman made the announcement on his official Instagram account, captioning the statement, “My heart is clear and the time is right to walk into a new chapter.”
Leading South Africa in all three formats, Du Plessis captained the Test side in 36 matches – winning on 18 occasions. “If someone had told me 15 years ago, that I’d play 69 Test matches for South Africa and captain the side, I wouldn’t have believed them,” he said. “I stand in a place of utmost gratitude for a test career full of blessings bestowed on me.”
In his over eight-years long career, Du Plessis hit ten centuries and 21 half-centuries in the longest format, scoring 4163 runs at an average of 40.02.
The former Proteas captain made an iconic Test debut in November 2012 against Australia in Adelaide. He scored a century and showed utmost resilience on his first match to help his side save the Test against the hosts.
His last match in the format, however, was not what the batsman would have hoped. Ending his eight-year long career in a Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi, Du Plessis could only manage scores of 17 and 5 in his last appearance the in red-ball cricket.
The Pretoria-born cricketer said that he now wants to focus his energies primarily on T20 cricket, as two World Cups are due in the next two years.
"The next two years are ICC T20 World Cup years. Because of this, my focus is shifting to this format and I want to play as much of it as possible around the world so that I can be the best player I can possibly be," he said. "I strongly believe that I have a lot to offer to the Proteas in this format. This does not mean that ODI cricket is no longer in the plans, I'm just making T20 cricket the priority in the short-term.”
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