Faf du Plessis surprised with the reporters not asking questions about AB de Villiers

South Africa are all set to embark on the tour to Sri Lanka which is their first assignment without AB de Villiers. The batting dynamo shocked the world in May by hanging his boots from international cricket despite being in great form with the bat. The skipper Faf du Plessis attended the press conference before leaving for the tour and was surprised that there were not many questions on the retired cricketer.

De Villiers played an important role in South Africa’s Test series wins over India and Australia earlier this year at home. It seemed that it was his second coming to the international arena as he was batting like a dream. Even in the Indian Premier League, the most loved cricketer in India was in full flow winning games single-handedly for his franchise.

The team has been so much dependent on him over the years and one should not blame du Plessis for expecting more questions on de Villiers. He had an enquiry of his own after answering the queries of the reporters in Cape Town on Sunday. “No AB questions?” the surprised skipper asked.

Chance to step up

Du Plessis, however, was quick to address the absence of AB de Villiers in whites for the Proteas. He also felt that it is a great opportunity for the other players to seal their place in the side. The 34-year-old had made himself unavailable for 17 out of 25 most recent Tests of South Africa.

“AB has only played the last one or two series for the Test team. It will be a nice opportunity [in Sri Lanka] for someone like Temba [Bavuma] to put his peg in the ground and make the [No. 4] position his own,” he was quoted as saying by timeslive.co.za.

The first of the two-match Test series will commence on July 12 in Galle.

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