FAF DU PLESSIS: FROM THE PITCH TO THE COMMENTARY BOX

Faf du Plessis is among the most celebrated T20 cricketers on the global circuit. He has played in all the major leagues worldwide, with his 13-year IPL career topping the list. 

Overall, Du Plessis is part of an elite club of players who have featured in over 400 T20 matches, scoring in excess of 12 000 runs.

Despite being 41, his supreme physical fitness and conditioning have been the hallmarks of his longevity. However, after a thumb injury brought his Betway SA20 Season 4 to a premature close in January, the Joburg Super Kings captain found himself with some free time while recovering.

Although Du Plessis is putting in the extra work to return to the pitch fitter and stronger than ever, the break provided an exciting career transition, with the veteran joining the IPL commentary team for the 2026 season.

Betway SA20 caught up with Du Plessis for an exclusive interview, where he spoke candidly about learning from commentary legends like Ian Bishop while staying true to himself, his insecurities regarding his command of English as an Afrikaans boy from Pretoria, and his firsthand experience watching South Africans dominate the IPL due to the emergence of the Betway SA20.

A different role at the IPL this year - a stint behind the mic doing commentary. How did that go?

It's interesting because when you reach my age, people start talking to you about opportunities in commentary. I've been very clear for about two years that I didn't want to venture into that space yet; I still wanted to have both feet firmly in playing actively in the big leagues around the world. But this time around, because of the SA20 injury, I had a long layoff before preparing for cricket again.

My window was about three to four months, so I thought it might be a good opportunity to dip my toes into what lies outside of actually playing the game. I was actually asked to do it during the World Cup as well, but I needed to do early rehab post-operation, so I prioritised getting my arm right first. This time, I had a small window to go over before coming back to focus on rehab. Playing is still very much the priority.

However, I really enjoyed the three weeks in India. With commentary, I feel like it's the closest you can get to the action because you have to read the game and be a part of it. It's very different from studio work; commentary is a lot closer to the game.

Your style of commentary made it very clear that you are still a player attached to the dressing room, which goes against the unwritten rule of commentary that you must detach. Yet, you brought a refreshing insight to the booth. Was that intentional?

First of all, thank you. When stepping into a new venture surrounded by commentators who have been doing it for years, you try to find your own label. One of those areas is my recency of playing with the current players.

Another area I was clear on is that when you've captained for a long time, you develop a sense for explaining and reading the game. Obviously, all players can read the game, but from a captaincy point of view, you have to articulate what you are seeing and experiencing - whether to fellow players, coaches, or the press. That isn't always easy to answer, and you have to learn how to do it. 

For me, leaning on that experience was a great way to find my own voice in the commentary space, and I really enjoyed it.

Did you seek advice from other commentators on how to go about it? Is there a particular commentator you enjoy or model yourself on?

The great thing is that when you have a mindset of wanting to learn and improve, opportunities just come your way. My stance going in was: "Guys, I know nothing about commentary. I would love to learn from all of you because you've been doing it for a while."

When you approach things with humility, people are much more willing to lend a helping hand, and that was certainly my experience. Every single commentator I worked with was unbelievably helpful. Spending time with them, you quickly see why someone like Ian Bishop is so highly regarded. He’s a great student of the game and does a lot of research.

That was easy for me to connect with because, as a player and captain, I’ve always been someone who makes notes, does research, and looks at matchups. When you do commentary, there's an element of that as well - you have to study and prepare before the game. 

I don't think everyone believes you have to do that; some just commentate on what's in front of them. But matching my style as a captain, I definitely did my research and wrote in my diary. I remember walking into the box early on, and they joked, "Look at you with your diary, like a little schoolboy taking notes." I enjoyed that because it showed I was taking it seriously.

Bishop is just one example. With Pommie Mbangwa, you can see his experience, and it was great working with him from a South African perspective. Sharing the mic with KP (Kevin Pietersen) was also fun. We played against each other years ago, and last year at Delhi, he was in a coaching role. Seeing him in the commentating chair now, he’s really good at it too.

From my observations, there are many different styles of commentary. Like with captaincy, it's just about being sure of what you bring to the table, staying as authentic as possible, and cracking a joke or two to show you're having fun.

Who would you say your style is more like: Mark Nicholas, Ian Bishop, or Ravi Shastri?

It's certainly not Mark Nicholas! He has the "gift of the gab". He speaks like someone from a private school in London - very posh. I am certainly not posh in the way I speak. Maybe sometimes with my fashion choices, but definitely not with my pronunciation. I'm still very Afrikaans and sometimes insecure about English being my second language. It's something I will always have to keep improving.

But I don't think about copying someone else's style. Instead, you observe and think, "Oh, that's interesting. I like what he's doing", and then you incorporate it into your own approach. Someone like Ravi Shastri has an unbelievable voice with a lot of presence - what I call a "whiskey voice" with a lot of depth. When he gets excited, it feels like the commentary box shakes because his voice is so powerful.

One major learning curve is realising that speaking normally doesn't always work in commentary. You have to convey emotion through your voice so the listener can feel the stadium's atmosphere, even if they can't see the game. Going through the gears in terms of excitement and living within the game is where I realised I need to do the most work.

When you speak to a dressing room or give an interview, you don't have to constantly shift gears; people can read your emotions through your body language. In commentary, the audience can't see you, so your tone and pacing are the only ways to transmit that energy.

Having now experienced the commentary booth, will we see you behind the mic next year in Betway SA20 Season 5, or still in a JSK shirt?

A JSK shirt, one hundred percent. I honestly feel I still have a lot of cricket left in me. I always ask myself: "Where is your mind? What are you thinking about the game?" Even while doing commentary, I found myself missing being on the field. It's where I still want to be.

Mentally, I feel just as driven to do the training and rehab; I still enjoy that process. Playing-wise, during this past SA20, I felt I was batting as well as I ever have, especially towards the back end of the competition.

How is your body responding to it all?

I think I am getting as close to 100% as I would like to be. Going into this past SA20, I unfortunately picked up an infection from a previous operation. Those things happen. It meant the second operation on my elbow is taking a bit longer to heal, but it’s not going to keep me off the field.

Finally, South Africa now has the most representatives at the IPL. What do you make of the role the SA20 has played in getting younger South African cricketers involved in the IPL?

It's a great observation. For years and years in the IPL, you saw a majority of Australians playing. That was largely because there were - and still are - a lot of Australian coaches, so they naturally gravitated towards their own players. For a long time, Australian cricket was seen as the pinnacle globally, so teams looked up to them.

However, South Africa making a couple of white-ball finals over the last few World Cups and winning the World Test Championship has put us back in the global spotlight as a proper cricketing nation.

When it comes to opportunity, you have to credit the SA20. People are finally seeing the depth of the talent pool in South Africa. In the past, you only saw our marquee national players in the IPL - maybe six or seven guys, plus one or two youngsters who came out of nowhere. It was never a high number.

But with the SA20 being broadcast to the whole world over the last four years, everyone can see there is so much more talent beyond the starting XI. Yes, the national side consists of incredible players, but much like in India and the IPL, there’s a massive group underneath them waiting for an opportunity who are just as dangerous in the T20 format.

India can pick a second- or third-string team because of their depth, and you can now say the same about South Africa. For a long time, I felt the national team was just a couple of injuries away from being knocked out of contention at an ICC event.

Now, I look at the team and see so many youngsters competing for spots; you could very easily pick a secondary Proteas team that would be just as dangerous. Just look at what the guys did when they went to New Zealand - several young players put their hands up and showed what they can do in international cricket. I would say that is 90% due to the SA20.