Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has made some shocking revelations in his new book Faf: Through Fire, the most incendiary being a part where he called David Warner a “bully”.
Du Plessis was the captain of the South African team that hosted Australia for the infamous series in 2018, which the former comfortably won by 3-1. But it was not the smoothest of series for either side, as sledding, scuffling, and ball-tampering overshadowed the high quality of cricket that was played by both sides.
In the Durban Test of the series, there was a heated altercation between Quinton de Kock and David Warner on the way to the dressing room. Warner was reportedly unhappy with something that was said by the South African wicket-keeper on the ground, and he carried the matter to the tunnel, where he was hurling abuse at de Kock. Nathan Lyon and Usman Khawaja were trying to control Warner, while de Kock seemed rather unperturbed about the incident.
Du Plessis, who was taking a shower, stepped out immediately in just a towel and calmed down the situation. In his recent interview with BBC, du Plessis said, “He [Warner] was a bully. I don’t have time for bullies.”
“Australia wanted to bully us,” du Plessis told. “We had to stand up for ourselves. They abused us that whole game but the way we fought back turned the series around.”
Australia won the first match rather comfortably but went on to lose the series that saw David Warner, Steven Smith, and Cameron Bancroft slapped with a ban by Cricket Australia (CA) for their involvement in a ball-tampering scandal.
Du Plessis also discussed his role in ‘Mintgate’ scandal, when he was seen applying mint on the red ball in a Test match against Pakistan. “I’m not perfect,” he said. “I’ve never claimed to be. I’ve never been the most talented player. Yes, I have talent, but it’s hard work and mental toughness that got me to where I am.”
Du Plessis retired from all forms of international cricket last year and currently plays franchise cricket across the world. He was appointed as the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore after Virat Kohli’s resignation.
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