"He served a very hard penalty that I didn't get even close to"- Faf du Plessis calls for David Warner's captaincy ban to be revoked
Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has asked for Australian opener David Warner's captaincy ban to be revoked.
Warner was sanctioned with a lifetime ban from assuming any leadership role in Australian cricket. This came following the infamous sandpaper-gate ball-tampering scandal during the 2018 Cape Town Test between South Africa and Australia.
David Warner, along with the then-Australia skipper Steve Smith, was handed a one-year suspension by Cricket Australia. Meanwhile, opener Cameron Bancroft was also banned from playing cricket for nine months.
Four years later, Australia are in the hunt for a new white-ball skipper after Aaron Finch announced his retirement from ODI cricket in September. He is expected to do the same in the T20I format after the conclusion of the ongoing 2022 T20 World Cup.
Ahead of the tournament, Cricket Australia named pace bowler Pat Cummins, who is also the red-ball captain, as Australia's new ODI captain. The board mentioned that Cummins will lead the side in next year's 50-over World Cup in India.
Matthew Wade is the current vice-captain in the shortest format and the wicketkeeper also stood as the stand-in skipper during their final group-stage fixture against Afghanistan in Adelaide. However, Wade has already announced his plans to retire from international cricket at the end of the T20 World Cup.
This suggests that Australia will need to appoint a new T20I skipper if they don't consider Cummins for the job. Cricket Australia has proposed a change to their Code of Conduct to allow the sanctions against Warner to be reviewed.
Faf du Plessis, who himself was found guilty of ball tampering during South Africa's 2016 tour of Australia where he was the captain, advocated for Warner's rigorous punishment to be lifted.
Speaking to The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald on David Warner's leadership ban, the former Proteas skipper said:
“I never throw stones - I point the finger back at myself probably harder than I do at anyone else, and I’m no glass house."
Du Plessis then added:
“So I think Davey has certainly done his time. He’s served a very, very hard penalty that a lot of guys, myself included, doing things wrong as well, didn’t get even close to the penalty that Smith, Bancroft, and Warner got."
Faf du Plessis confident about David Warner's leadership skills
Faf du Plessis believes David Warner will do a great job with the Australian team if the latter becomes the white-ball captain. The former South African batter cited Warner's success as Sunrisers Hyderabad captain in the IPL, where he led the franchise to their maiden title in 2016.
“In terms of would he be able to be let back into doing it? Yes. I’ve certainly seen him in the IPL being captain of one of the franchises there and having a successful campaign."
David Warner is currently part of Australia's T20 World Cup squad but has managed just 44 runs in four innings at an average of 11 so far in the tournament. He scored 25 in 18 balls against Afghanistan on Friday (November 4) at the Adelaide Oval.
However, Warner was instrumental in Australia's T20 World Cup-winning campaign last year. If his team are to retain the trophy this year, he would need to play some good innings again, provided his team makes it to the semis.