Faf du Plessis fascinated by the all-round capabilities of Vernon Philander

South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis showered praise on all-rounder Vernon Philander who played a major role in South Africa’s triumph at Trent Bridge. The 32-year cricketer rose up to the occasion with both bat and ball which rode South Africa to a colossal victory by 340 runs.

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Du Plessis hailed the bowler terming him as the ‘new Jacques Kallis’ as Philander showed signs of great potential in the future. Philander came into bat at number 7 in both the innings and contributed with crucial scores of 54 and 42. He equalled his heroics with the bat with the ball by picking up 3 wickets for just 24 runs in 10 overs which saw the Englishmen get bundled out for a mere score of 133.

Former South African international Jacques Kallis was a true legend of the game and is rated among the greatest all-rounders to have ever played the game. As a batsman, he scored 45 Test centuries averaging well above 55. His record with a ball is also worth appreciation as he managed to bag 292 wickets in his Test career.

Vernon Philander is mainly a fast-medium bowler and has the capability to swing the ball late. He has improved his batting in recent times and is slowly but steadily trying to develop himself as an effective all-rounder. He has grabbed 169 Test wickets at an average of 22.21 which perfectly portrays his quality as a bowler.

“He’s becoming the new Jacques Kallis the way he’s batting,” said Du Plessis.

“He’s a fantastic cricketer. When there’s something there (in the pitch), he’s probably the best in the world at doing something with it.” added the captain.

“We left a batsman out to play two all-rounders, with that comes extra responsibility,” said the captain. “With the promotion to number seven, I backed his technique and he responded by getting crucial runs in this game. He stepped up to the plate.”