During the course of IPL 2021, Virat Kohli informed the Royal Challengers Bangalore management that the 14th season of the tournament would be his last year as the team captain. From the 2022 season, the former captain will be a part of the RCB family only as a player.
Announcing a new captain was a huge task for the management, and although they took a long time to decide on Kohli’s successor, their final decision has been widely applauded. Faf du Plessis, who was acquired by RCB for Rs 7 crore at the 2022 auctions held last month, has been named the team’s new leader.
The right-hander, who previously played for the Chennai Super Kings, was the second-highest run-getter in IPL 2021 with 633 runs - only two runs behind Orange Cap holder Ruturaj Gaikwad. A year before that, the hard-hitting batsman was the leading run-scorer for the MS Dhoni-led side.
With IPL 100 matches and 2935 runs, du Plessis brings with him plenty of experience to take up RCB’s captaincy duties. Not to forget, he has been at the helm of his national team too. Du Plessis has won 62.5% of the matches he has captained South Africa in across formats. He has 18 wins in 36 Tests, 28 wins in 39 ODIs and 25 wins in 40 T20Is.
Talking about Kohli’s captaincy stint with RCB, he led the team to 66 wins in 140 games, boasting of a win percentage of 48.52. Under Kohli, RCB reached the playoffs three times in nine seasons, which includes a runners-up position in 2016. With the added responsibility of captaincy not on his shoulders any more, Kohli will be looking to bat much more freely in IPL 2022 and help the side win their first-ever IPL title.
RCB play their first game of the season on March 27 against the Punjab Kings.
