Faf du Plessis opens up on Test retirement: Mark Boucher and I weren’t connecting on a deeper degree

Faf du Plessis mentioned {that a} breakdown in his relationship with coach Mark Boucher led him to retire from Test cricket. Du Plessis took the choice following the sequence in opposition to England on February 17, 2020.

New Delhi ,UPDATED: Oct 25, 2022 08:33 IST

Faf du Plessis retired from Test cricket in February 2020. (Reuters Photo)

By India Today Web Desk: Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis opened up on his retirement from Test cricket, saying {that a} breakdown in his relationship with coach Mark Boucher led him to hold his boots within the longest format.

The 38-year-old added that Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) former director of cricket Graeme Smith and convener of selectors Victor Mpitsang together with Boucher ghosted him when he made himself obtainable for T20Is.

In his ebook ‘Faf: Through Fire’, Du Plessis defined his remaining part with the Proteas, which coincided with Boucher taking on for a sequence in opposition to England in December 2019. Du Plessis wrote that he “felt different” as in contrast with earlier sequence as he did not really feel like being backed by Boucher in entrance of the media.

When du Plessis was requested concerning the dropping of Temba Bavuma, the then crew’s solely African batter, the previous captain had mentioned that South Africa did not see color. Du Plessis’ remarks caught hearth and he was criticised for ignoring South Africa’s segregated previous.

“I needed someone to back me up in the media, and Graeme and Mark were best positioned to clear the air and show public support for their national captain who was dealing with head- and tailwinds simultaneously. When Mark attended a press conference while this storm was raging, he didn’t do that,” du Plessis mentioned.

Du Plessis’ break from ODIs and Boucher’s query on whether or not he would relinquish the T20I captaincy added to the feud.

The former captain mentioned that he spent the sequence “concerned that Mark and I weren’t connecting on a deeper level as a captain and coach” and felt that their relationship was “somewhat cold and distant”. Du Plessis additionally wrote that he “increasingly noticed how close he (Boucher) was with Dean (Elgar) and Quinny (de Kock)”.

Du Plessis additional highlighted that he found Smith and Boucher “felt strongly about appointing Quinny (as captain) in both white-ball formats”. Du Plessis completed the England sequence feeling that he was “losing that connection with my purpose as a leader in the team”.

After the sequence in opposition to England, du Plessis took the choice on February 17, 2020 since “Mark and I didn’t click” and he felt it might be “better for the team to have a new captain than someone who couldn’t connect with the coach”.

Published On:

Oct 25, 2022