'He's at that stage in his career when...': RCB star explains why team made 'right choice' in picking Kohli's successor

Chasing an elusive IPL title, Bangalore will open their campaign against Punjab Kings in Mumbai on March 27.

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) were spoilt for choice ahead of appointing a new captain for the impending Indian Premier League season. The franchise had Glenn Maxwell and Dinesh Karthik in the leadership bunch with a slight possibility of Virat Kohli taking over the role again. But Faf du Plessis on Saturday was named the team's new skipper. The South African was acquired by Bangalore in the recent mega auction after getting into a bidding war with his former franchise Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals.

Virat Kohli (IPL)

The 37-year-old du Plessis was bought by RCB for a sum of ₹7 crore and his experience of playing 100 IPL games will come in handy for the franchise. He had also scored 633 runs for CSK in their last year's IPL-winning campaign.

Karthik, who himself was tipped as Kohli's potential successor, described du Plessis' appointment as the right move and underlined the South African's captaincy prowess.

"He's the right choice. He's at that stage in his career when he's ready to take on the responsibility. He's played IPL for a certain amount of time. He's taking his time to know the youngsters and his batting is a big plus as well. We have some strong characters in the team and he's one of those guys. He's played for his country for a good amount of time and is a great tactician too. At this point in time, Faf is a very good choice for RCB and they have absolutely made the right choice," Karthik told Cricbuzz.

"When you talk about overseas captains, Shane Warne comes to your mind. George Bailey also did a good job for Punjab. Eoin Morgan, out of the personal experience, was fabulous as a captain. He was a very good tactician and looked at the game in a different way. With Faf, it's hard for me to judge how it's going to go right off the bat.

"But he's led franchises in other tournaments and done a good job at that. That definitely would've played a part behind his appointment as RCB captain. He's first trying to create a relationship with young guys. The name that he's got especially in CSK is that he's a very warm guy," he further added.

Du Plessis was handed over the cap by team's chairman Prathmesh Mishra and director cricket operations Mike Hesson. "Obviously coming in as an outsider, I'm deeply grateful for the opportunity," he said about the new role.

"I have played a lot of IPL cricket. I understand the dynamics and it's no small thing to trust an outsider who is an overseas player to do the job of the leader."

Du Plessis also spoke about working with Kohli, who has played a key role in Bangalore's evolution since 2014. "We've got great captains. We've got one of the great leaders in the game in Virat. That will be my shadow and making sure that we bounce off everything of each other."

Chasing an elusive IPL title, Bangalore will open their campaign against Punjab Kings in Mumbai on March 27.