New Delhi: Former South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis has revealed an interesting fact. He said he and his wife received death threats. It happened after AB de Villiers was run out during their 2011 World Cup semifinal defeat to New Zealand. The match was played at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, Dhaka. South Africa lost the match by 49 runs to be knocked out of the tournament, which was won by co-hosts India.
“I received death threats after that (match). My wife received death threats. We turned on social media and we were blown away. It became very personal. There were some very offensive things said that I won’t repeat,” Du Plessis was quoted as saying by ‘ESPNcricinfo’.
“It makes you introverted towards people and you put a shield up. All players go through this. Incidents like these force us to keep our circles very small. It’s why I’ve worked so hard on creating a safe space within our camp,” added the former South Africa skipper.
Led by Daniel Vettori, the Kiwis batted first and posted 221 for eight in 50 overs. In reply, the Proteas were bowled out for 172 with Du Plessis, playing in only his 10th ODI, making 36.
Also, Du Plessis was slapped with a fine of 50 percent of his match fee for pushing Kyle Mills. The latter was New Zealand’s 12th man in the game.
Du Plessis recently returned home after representing Chennai Super Kings (CKS) in the now-suspended IPL 2021. He was in great form with the bat as he scored 320 runs from seven games.
