Joburg Super Kings captain Faf du Plessis expressed his gratefulness to have spend time with Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni during his stint with the franchise before moving to Royal Challengers Bangalore for IPL 2022.
Faf du Plessis will be leading Joburg Super Kings in the upcoming season SA20 League, starting on January 10. Johannesburg will begin its campaign against Sunrisers Eastern Cape Town on Wednesday at St George's Park in Gqeberha.
Speaking to reporters ahead of second season of SA20, Faf du Plessis said he was part of CSK at the start of his journey with franchise, having MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming at the helm as skipper and head coach, respectively. He also added that how his first season with Chennai Super Kings went.
"It was great to be part of that dressing room as a young guy. My biggest learning curve was being fortunate enough to be there under Stephen Fleming and MS Dhoni really at the start of my initial journey." JSK skipper said.
"Just to see the big guns do things, it was great to learn from them. During my first season, I was just sitting and asking questions and observing them to do things," du Plessis added.
He is always very calm under pressure - Faf du Plessis on MS Dhoni
Faf du Plessis heaped praise on Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni for his ability to be calm in pressure situations.
"MS is Captain Cool, as they call him. He is always very calm under pressure. So it's always important that under pressure or when the stakes are a bit more higher, you remain relaxed and it makes a big difference to the bowling attack, especially. Very lucky to have played under him,"
MS Dhoni led Chennai Super Kings to fifth IPL title in the last season of the tournament. The 42-year-old will return to lead Men in Yellow for the upcoming IPL season.
Faf du Plessis played 9 IPL seasons with CSK
Faf du Plessis received his first IPL contract from Chennai Super Kings ahead of IPL 2011. Since then, he played an instrumental role in success of the team, helping them win three titles in the tournament in 2011, 2018, and 2021.
Faf du Plessis played his last season with CSK in IPL 2021, wherein he emerged as the second-highest run-getter of the season, amassing 633 runs, including six half-centuries, at an average of 45.21 in 16 matches.
The former South African batter was released by CSK ahead of IPL 2022 auction. Chennai Super Kings wanted to secure his services but lost the bidding wars to Royal Challengers Bangalore, who bought him for INR 7 crore.
In his first season as RCB captain, Faf du Plessis led the side to their third consecutive playoffs but lost to Rajasthan Royals in the Eliminator in IPL 2022. In the following season, Royal Challengers Bangalore failed to qualify for playoffs after finishing sixth in the league stage.
