'CSK will try to get him back' - RCB reveal their strategy to bag Faf du Plessis in IPL 2022 mega auction

Royal Challengers Bangalore managed to bag former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis in IPL 2022 mega auction at a decent price of INR 7 crore. RCB were involved in a bidding war with his former franchise Chennai Super Kings along with Delhi Capitals. However, the franchise managed to execute their plans and successfully purchased the seasoned player.

A week after the auction, the official social media profile of the franchise has shared a video of their mock auction for the South African batter. The franchise’s director of cricket Mike Hesson insisted that du Plessis has all the qualities RCB need in a “leader.”

“With the options we have in our current squad and the uncertainty surrounding those, and the options we have at the auction, where we think we can gain a real advantage is with Faf du Plessis who is highly experienced. He has captained South Africa for long, won the IPL many times and is a very consistent performer in terms of how he operates. He’s a strong character and highly respected. These are a lot of attributes you want in a leader,” said Hesson.

Every important decision needs preparation, and the think tank planned Faf du Plessis’s auction pick well ahead of the #IPLAuction, considering the experience and the leadership value he brings to the group. Watch to find out how it all unfolded.#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers pic.twitter.com/JpnvWCcT7Y

— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) February 20, 2022

No one will expect us to bid for him: Hesson

“It’s pretty clear that CSK will likely try and get him back, as they do with all their players. He’s also in the marquee group; for us to have some structure going forward, we need to allocate some budget to get that. We would want to go through teams who might look at him. CSK will obviously make a bid, no one will expect us in terms of who we are likely to go for,” said Hesson.

The franchise, as per their auction plan, managed to bag both Plessis and Sri Lankan spinner Wanindu Hasaranga on Day 1 of the auction.

“We see his (Faf’s) role along with Hasaranga as two most important overseas roles to get on the first day. There are a number of different permutations and combinations to get to this point and I’m sure there will continue to be some. But the primary role is to start and fine-tune how we have to go about achieving that. The priority on Day 1 is to get Hasaranga and Faf,” Hesson said in the video.