Following South Africa’s defeat against India in the second Test in Pune on Sunday, skipper Faf du Plessis said that the experience between his side and India made the difference in the outcome of both the Tests.
The right-handed batsman, who scored his second fifty of the series during South Africa’s first innings, admitted that his team has almost all its experience with the likes of Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel no longer with the team.
“I think, it’s purely a case of inexperience. I said before this Test series, your best Test teams are the teams with the most experience. When it comes to this Indian team, there’s a lot of experience in that dressing room, there’s a lot of Test matches behind their names,” said du Plessis during the press conference after losing the series.
“We are at this stage where we have lost almost all of our experience. Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, all of them were seasoned campaigners. You don’t replace those guys overnight,” he continued.
“And now it’s a new group of guys, who have played 5, 6, 10, 11, 12, 15 Test matches. That will take time. If you take the best players out of any team, they would find the same challenges,” added du Plessis.
du Plessis acknowledged that as a captain he, alongside Quinton de Kock and Dean Elgar, need to do more and show the way for the other members of the team.
“For us, it is important as a senior player group to make sure that we put in performances ourselves. Myself, Deano, Quinny (De Kock), we can’t expect other guys to make runs,” said du Plessis.
“We need to make sure we make the runs first and then the others guys to chip in with us. In a time like this, it is important that your big guys really, really take control and make sure that they put in the bulk of the work,” added the South African skipper.
Following his team’s defeat in the second Test, du Plessis indicated that some changes in the team combination are around the corner.
“The batting failed in the first innings and from the starting point of view, we have not started well. Every single innings, we have been in a position where we have been 40 or 50 for three. It’s a vital component as how you start in the sub-continent,” he said.
“India could be a tough place to play if you lose form. And perhaps it is a good opportunity to get some fresh heads into the team. Just from my mental point of view, it can be a place for you like, where’s my next one (hundred) going to come from,” added du Plessis.
du Plessis, meanwhile, was wholesome in his praise for his counterpart Virat Kohli. The Indian skipper scored an unbeaten 254 as the hometeam posted 601/5 on the board in the first innings of the Pune Test.
“Virat’s knock was incredible. Surprised that he started slow, normally he is quite busy and gets off quite well. He was quite patient in the beginning, which was required in the wicket, he left well. And then, sheer mental toughness to bat for that long. It takes huge amount of brain power. You can see that, and you can only admire from a distance,” concluded du Plessis.
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