Faf du Plessis showed his class in his first game for Royal Challengers Bangalore in Mumbai on Sunday. The newly appointed RCB captain overcame a slow start to break into the Punjab Kings bowling unit and scored his first hundred in IPL history.
Faf du Plessis batted on 23 balls from 34 as the lack of competitive action was evident in the way the South Africa batsman struggled with timing. Despite a 50-run opening stand with young Anuj Rawat, RCB didn’t move the scoreboard at a brisk pace, hitting 79 in just 10 overs.
IPL 2022: full coverage
However, Faf du Plessis broke the bonds in the 13th over when West Indian pacer Odean Smith bowled while the RCB skipper tonked the fast bowler for 2 sixes and a boundary. There was no turning back from there as the South African star hit 7 sixes and 3 boundaries and ran hard between the wickets in his 118 run streak with Virat Kohli.
Faf du Plessis was just 12 runs short of his first IPL hundred, but the RCB captain had gotten the job done with 88 in just 57 balls and had his last 65 runs in just 23 balls. Du Plessis went on a six-stroke spree as he treated the PBKS pacers and spinners with contempt.
Only a stunning catch in the 18th over by Shahrukh Khan helped stop du Plessis’ blitz as Arshdeep Singh took the big wicket.
CSK FANS WIN MEME GAME
Chennai Super Kings fans were dismayed to see their former opener continue his career in the IPL, this time for a new franchise – RCB, who are also their rivals in the moneyed T20 league.
CSK fans watch Faf Du Plessis pic.twitter.com/jQmFa4D1jz
— Sagar (@sagarcasm) March 27, 2022
CSK fans watch faf bat today?? @faf1307 #IPL #FafDuPlessis pic.twitter.com/ptDAFjSg9D
— Kushagra?? (@not_kushaagra) March 27, 2022
Fifty for Faf Du Plessis in the RCB! Miss him ?? @ChennaiIPL#FafDuplessis #IPL #IPL2022 #TAAIPL #TAAIPL2022 #RCB pic.twitter.com/9Ld8gH4qKA
— MS Dhoni 7781 #Dhoni #IPL2022 (@msdhoni7781) March 27, 2022
Me and my CSK fanboys see FAF DU PLESSIS in RCB ??#RCB #RCBvsPBKS pic.twitter.com/MUQt1Xdgjh
— Mridul Pal (@themridulpal) March 27, 2022
Us CSK fans watch Faf Du Plessis do his usual thing but for RCB. pic.twitter.com/ZrktbwUCQW
— CSKToni (@KroosBlancos) March 27, 2022
CSK fans watch faf du plessis and like it pic.twitter.com/i0t7OSzsnP
— Kavya mohan ?? (@kavyamohan_) March 27, 2022
CSK fans watch Faf du Plessis scorer for RCB:#RCBvsPBKS #IPL2022 #ViratKohli?? pic.twitter.com/jMj0cnTgWO
— RaXi (@kirikbhai) March 27, 2022
CSK CEO after firing Faf Du Plessis pic.twitter.com/F7cBnf5Wuu
— Rajabets India?????? (@smileandraja) March 27, 2022
Faf du Plessis was not retained by the Super Kings ahead of the IPL 2022 Mega Auction. Surprisingly, CSK didn’t break the bank for one of the most consistent openers in league history. RCB bought du Plessis for Rs 7 crore.
Earlier on Saturday du Plessis’ replacement Devon Conway struggled to get going for the Chennai Super Kings as the defending champions lost the tournament opener to the Kolkata Knight Riders.
