SA need to look beyond Faf to Quinton: Team director

Dharamsala, September 10

South Africa’s cricket establishment acknowledges Faf du Plessis’ contribution both as a player and captain but it’s about time they look at the future with belief in Quinton de Kock’s leadership skills, interim director Enoch Nkwe said. While 35-year-old du Plessis is still the captain of the Test side, Nkwe gave enough indications that South Africa wants to infuse fresh blood into the team going into next year’s World T20 in Australia.

“We know where Faf stands as a captain and as a player. He has done great things for SA cricket. But we also need to look at what future looks like and we strongly believe in Quinton, who is going to be leading the team going forward,” Nkwe said, with the skipper by his side during their media interaction at the HPCA ground. “We have a good leader and it’s an opportunity to start building for the future,” he added.

While admitting that India is a formidable team, Nkwe expressed confidence that this upcoming three-match T20I series, beginning on Sunday, will help them assess the Proteas strength. “It’s the start of a new chapter and focus will be on the coming series against India. We would be looking to lay a good foundation going into the T20 World Cup next year in Australia,” Nkwe, who has played 42 First-Class games for Gauteng, said. — PTI