Faf du Plessis announced on Monday (February 17) that he will be stepping down from his role as captain of South Africa across all formats effective immediately.
“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,” du Plessis said in a statement.
“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.
“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.”
Du Plessis captained South Africa in a total of 112 international matches across all three formats since December 2012 when he led South Africa for the very first time against New Zealand in a T20I series.
He led the Proteas in several famous victories, including the team’s five-nil inbound ODI series and 2-1 outbound Test series victories against Australia in 2016.
