SA vs AUS | Faf du Plessis rested for ODIs against Australia, confirms Mark Boucher

SA vs AUS | Faf du Plessis rested for ODIs against Australia, confirms Mark Boucher

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South African head coach Mark Boucher confirmed that former skipper Faf du Plessis will be rested for the upcoming ODI series against Australia later this month. However, he confirmed that du Plessis would be part of the plans for the national team’s ODI future, with de Kock taking over the reins.

The 35-year-old South African batsman Faf du Plessis, who last played in South Africa’s ODI against Australia in July of 2019, will continue to be out of the ODI set up for the home series against Australia. On Wednesday, South Africa’s coach Mark Boucher confirmed that the veteran would not be part of the 15-man squad for the home series despite being part of the T20I squad earlier in the week. 

Du Plessis has not been part of the South African setup for almost a year. In addition, he has also stepped down as the captain of the national team from all formats, with de Kock taking over the reins in the T20Is. On the other hand, Keshav Maharaj also returns to the ODI squad following a long layoff from the limited-overs format. Maharaj’s last assignment for the national team in coloured clothing came in 2018 when they faced Sri Lanka. 

"With the completion of the 2019 Cricket World Cup and the next one being three years away from now, we always saw the series against England and Australia as an opportunity to play some fresh talent," Boucher said in a media release from Cricket South Africa, reported Times of India. 

"Faf has been fantastic for us in white ball cricket and remains very much in our ODI plans and we will manage his workload for the near future diligently. I would like to strengthen our depth pool right now and see what players we have out there. I feel that this is the time and opportunity to do so," he added. 

Seamer Lutho Sipamla, Janneman Malan and Kyle Verreynne all make it to the cut for the series against Australia. Alongside du Plessis, Rassie van der Dussen and all-rounder Dwayne Pretorius find themselves out of the squad, rested after a long series against England. The series starts in Paarl on Saturday before they head to Bloemfontein next Thursday. 

ODI Squad against Australia : Quinton de Kock (captain), Temba Bavuma, David Miller, Kagiso Rabada, Andile Phehlukwayo, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lungi Ngidi, Beuran Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Janneman Malan, Jon-Jon Smuts, Anrich Nortje, Lutho Sipamla, Keshav Maharaj, Kyle Verreynne

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