Former South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis is thinking of returning to international cricket in time for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup next year. Du Plessis’ last white-ball match for his country was a T20I contest against England in Cape Town at the end of 2020. Despite not playing an international match since then, the 39-year-old has been performing exceptionally well at the domestic level. He was the second-highest run-scorer at this year’s Indian Premier League, contributing an impressive 730 runs for Royal Challengers Bangalore from 14 innings.
Du Plessis is currently in Abu Dhabi, participating in another domestic tournament and has been in discussions with Rob Walter, the new South Africa white-ball coach, regarding a potential comeback to the international scene before the commencement of the T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies next year. Du Plessis led the South African team in two T20 World Cup campaigns in 2014 and 2016 and has never officially retired from international white-ball cricket. Recently, South African team selector, Linda Walter, hinted at the possibility of experienced players like du Plessis making a comeback, despite not having a central playing contract with South Africa. Despite this, he firmly believes that he remains in excellent physical condition to make a comeback and represent his country in cricket once again.