‘Virat Kohli is a bigger alpha than me…’: Faf Du Plessis on being skipper at RCB
Faf Du Plessis opened up about leading RCB with Kohli as one of this teammates. He highlighted his equation with the Indian superstar and how he tried to build a relationship rather than competing with Kohli.
As a cricketer, Virat Kohli is someone who wears his heart on his sleeve. His aggression and competitiveness on the field is known across the globe. Some cricket experts acknowledge that as the former India captain across all formats, he infused competitive spirit and zeal into the Men in Blue like no other skipper had done before.
Kohli was also the captain for franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore(RCB) in the Indian Premier League(IPL) for a long time. He later passed on the baton to South Africa's Faf Du Plessis. Recently in an interaction with The Grade Cricketer, du Plessis opened up about leading RCB with Kohli as one of this teammates. He highlighted his equation with the Indian superstar and how he tried to build a relationship rather than competing with Kohli.
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“He’s a much bigger alpha (male) than me. You don’t try and compete. The ego is the thing where peacocks generally clash. Then like the feathers come out and you want to see who has got the shiniest in the room. Luckily, I get that about people and relationships," said Plessis.
“I don’t try and outshine someone else in the dressing room. I try and build a relationship. With Virat, that was exactly my point of entry,” highlighted the right-handed batter.
Talking further, Plessis elucidated the competitive spirit of the former RCB captain and called him a 'superhuman'.
“I had played against him for so long. He is one of the most competitive guys in the world of cricket to play against. You sit there and you go - how does this guy have so much energy? Every single time a wicket falls, doesn’t matter if it’s a No.11 or an opening batter, his passion for celebration is like you just have to go, ‘I’ll take my hats off to you’. He’s superhuman.” said the South African batter.
However, the 38-year-old was quick to reflect on the other side of Kohli which he saw up close as his teammate. Plessis highlighted Kohli's caring nature and called him 'a family guy'.
“When you play with him, you see there is the other side, which is this caring guy that just wants to play cricket, and actually a really family guy. He’s amazing,” concluded Plessis.
