Faf du Plessis, a former South African cricket star, knows a lot about Virat Kohli, the famous Indian player. They played together in the IPL (a big cricket tournament) for three years at the Royal Challengers Bangalore, and du Plessis understands both the pressure and excitement of cricket.
In February 2021, du Plessis, then 36 years old, chose to retire from Test cricket after playing 69 matches for South Africa. This was a tough but smart decision, as he wanted to focus on T20 internationals, especially with two T20 World Cups coming up.
Now, four years later, Kohli faces a big challenge. His scoring has dropped significantly, and he doesn’t look like the dominant player he once was. In his last five years of playing Test cricket, his average has dropped to 30.72, which is much lower than his career average of 46.85. Just a few years ago, Kohli was scoring well in all formats of the game.
Recently, Kohli struggled in a series against Australia where he only scored 191 runs and was out in the same way eight times. Many wonder if it might be time for him to step away from Test cricket. He used to be a major supporter of Test matches, but now he seems to be at a difficult point in his career.
India’s next Test series will be in June against England. Will Kohli be part of that team? It seems likely, but some think he might not be ready, especially with the series starting right after the IPL, giving him little time to prepare for Test matches.
Du Plessis said, “It’s different for every player. Every player needs to decide for themselves when it’s time to go. For me, when I lost my love for Test cricket, I knew it was time to let new players step in, and I wanted to focus on T20s.” He believes Kohli still has a lot of motivation and will know what to do next.
At 40, du Plessis may be retired from international cricket but remains active in various leagues, including the IPL 2025, where he will play for the Delhi Capitals. He is considered a valuable player and is still passionate about cricket. He said, “As long as my motivation is there, I want to keep playing.”
Even with the added pressure of aging, du Plessis continues to stay fit and active in cricket, proving that with hard work and determination, he can still compete at a high level.
Leave a Reply