IPL 2022: Faf du Plessis commands respect, says Virat Kohli

Royal Challengers Banglore veteran Virat Kohli says Faf du Plessis’s solid leadership skills was a key reason that they planned to grab his services for the upcoming IPL edition.
Kohli, who has been with Royal Challengers right from the first edition in 2008 and as full-time captain since 2013, relinquished captaincy after last year’s IPL.
RCB will now be led four-time IPL winner Du Plessis, who was purchased the franchise for Rs 7 crore in the mega auction last month.

King Kohli talks about his renewed energy, the confidence he has in Faf, and more on @kreditbee presents Bold Diaries.#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #IPL2022 #Mission2022 @imVkohli pic.twitter.com/QQlaAFTpuO
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) March 22, 2022
“Getting Faf at the auctions for us, the plan was very clear. We need a leader in the change room who commands a lot of respect. Commands not demands, because he has been there done that,” Kohli said in video posted RCB’s twitter handle.
“He’s a Test captain, that profile comes with a lot of accolades already and we are excited for him to lead RCB. He will do a tremendous job.
“We get along really well with him, all of us myself Maxi (Glenn Maxwell) Dinesh Karthik and I think all the guys will enjoy this tournament,” he added.
Kohli joined the RCB preparatory camp on Monday. The Indian batting veteran had earlier said he made the decision to quit RCB captaincy as he wanted some space to manage his workload.
“It’s unbelievable IPL has come this far. (I’m here with) Renewed energy because I’m off a lot of responsibilities and duties and life is in a very good place. For me, it’s all about going about life with a lot of joy and happiness.

ROYAL CHALLENGERS ASSEMBLE! 😎💪🏻
Preparing for #IPL2022 with a smile and complete focus. 😁💯 @kreditbee #PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #Mission2022 pic.twitter.com/QMV7BHYrG2
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) March 22, 2022
“My focus is so clear, it’s so precise what I want to do — have a lot of fun and enjoy myself on the field and give myself fully to this team, like I have for many years, without any load.”
The 15th edition of the Indian Premier League is set to begin from Saturday with defending champions Chennai Super Kings taking on Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium here.