Faf du Plessis showers praises on these two players after Port Elizabeth victory

South African skipper Faf du Plessis was all smiles in the post match press conference after the conclusion of the second Test against Australia. Coming in to the game, the hosts were under tremendous pressure having lost the first Test in Durban. They showed some really good spirit to thump the touring Aussies by 6 wickets in the Port Elizabeth. The chief architects of the South African win in the Test were Kagiso Rabada and AB de Villiers.

In the post match press conference, Faf du Plessis was all praise for these two players. He conceded that the cricketers are pivotal parts of the team. In the first innings, AB de Villiers hit an unbeaten 126, his 22nd Test ton. On the other hand, Kagiso Rabada finished with match figures of 11 wickets. Talking about AB de Villiers, Faf noted that the batsman is absolute genius.

“Serious character. My mind goes back to Dean and Hashim’s partnership where it was tough. The ball was reversing and if you have got a player like AB de Villiers in your side, you can then transfer that pressure back onto the opposition,” quoted Faf du Plessis.

Hailing the efforts of Rabada and ABD, Faf du Plessis cited that the two players were at a different level altogether. Furthermore, he had special words of praise for Rabada, who got some serious reverse swing on the track. The South African skipper conceded that they knew choking the run flow of the opposition was an ideal way to put pressure on them in the match.

“Absolute champion of a bowler Kagiso Rabada, really proud of him. They were in a different level this game [KG and AB]. AB looked like he was batting on a different wicket to all the other batters. Really good to see him in top form again, really really hungry,” mentioned the South African skipper.

“There are two bowlers – Starc and Rabada who would get excessive reverse swing, exceptional bowlers. As a bowling unit we went to 2.8rpo, we knew if we keep this Australian batting quiet – that’s half the battle,” he added further.

On Rabada’s suspension

While the Test win came as a good news, there was a bad news that arrived for the Proteas camp soon after the game. Rabada was handed a two-match suspension for his misconduct on the field. Commenting on Rabada’s ban, Faf du Plessis remarked that this loss is unfortunate for the series as Rabada was one of the impact players in the side.

“It’s disappointing for the series. We would want the best players to play in the series, we will still challenge that to make sure he [Rabada] can still play a part in the series,” du Plessis conceded.

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