Happy Birthday Faf du Plessis: A look at top-5 batting displays of the South African in IPL

Faf du Plessis can be considered a full T20 package because of his exceptional batting techniques and fast reactions on the field. After making his ODI debut against India, the right-handed batter has become a significant part of the South African unit. Though he recorded a ton in his debut Test, du Plessis is known for his expertise in limited-over cricket.

Du Plessis had been an integral part of Chennai Super Kings since his debut in the Indian Premier League in 2012. He played several match-winning knocks in the yellow jersey until he was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore ahead of the 2022 season. The franchise not only bought him for a whopping 7 crore but also named him the skipper after Virat Kohli stepped down from the leadership duty. Under their new captain, the Bangalore-based unit played well throughout the group stage but got choked in the second playoff game against Rajasthan Royals.

During his decade-long IPL career, du Plessis has appeared in 116 matches and celebrated a total of 3403 runs with the bat. He has got an impressive batting average of 34.37 and a 130-plus strike rate. He has already named 25 half-centuries to his name but missed the ton several times by a few runs.

Today, on the occasion of his 38th birthday, let’s relieve top IPL knocks of the RCB skipper:

95 runs off 60 deliveries against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2021: It was the 15th occasion of the 2021 IPL season when du Plessis narrowly missed three figures but remained unbeaten for a 60-ball 95. The explosive show including 9 boundaries and 4 maximums helped CSK breach a huge 200-plus total which led them to a comfortable 18-run win over Kolkata.

95 runs off 55 deliveries against Punjab Kings in 2019: While most of the batters failed to stay longer on the crease, du Plessis’ 95 runs took Chennai to a decent total of 170 runs. The 55-ball innings was laced with 10 fours and 4 sixes. Though the effort went in vain as CSK lost the battle by 6 wickets, this knock comes among the best of the South African.

86 runs off 59 deliveries against Kolkata Knight Riders: The CSK opener guided the yellow army to lift their fourth IPL title with a magnificent 86-run innings on the final against KKR. Powered by the knock which included 7 boundaries and 3 sixes, CSK put up a 193-run target in front of Kolkata. As the Knight Riders fell 27 runs short of the chase, the full-house Wankhede watched Chennai skipper MS Dhoni getting another title to his name.

88 runs off 57 delivery against Punjab Kings in 2020: In his first match as the RCB captain in 2022, Faf du Plessis smashed 88 runs in 57 balls against Punjab Kings. However, Bangalore bowlers failed to defend the mammoth 205-run total and lost the match by 5 wickets. With the innings, the South African batter earned a special space in the hearts of RCB fans from the very first appearance in the Bangalore outfit.

87 runs off 53 deliveries against Punjab Kings in 2020: The 2020 season saw a rare version of CSK who were struggling to find momentum. After winning the opening match against Mumbai, they lost three matches in a row. In the fourth game, du Plessis played a heroic knock of 87 runs in 53 balls including as many as 11 boundaries and a maximum. The commendable batting display led the side to clinch the victory by 10 wickets.

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