Faf also recalled the horrific abuse aimed at him and his wife after South Africa’s exit from the 2011 World Cup.
Former South Africa captain and veteran batsman Faf du Plessis has recently made a shocking revelation of cruelty during the early stages of his career, revealing he and his wife Imari received death threats after his team’s exit from the ICC 2011 World Cup quarter-final held in Bangladesh.
South Africa suffered a 49-run defeat at the hands of New Zealand in the third quarter-final of the 2011 World Cup at the Sher-e-Bangla-Stadium in Dhaka. Du Plessis was involved in a heated exchange with New Zealand players Ross Taylor and Scott Styris during the 2011 World Cup quarter-final between South Africa and Black Caps in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and even he was fined 50% of his match fee.
Chasing a modest total of 222 runs in Dhaka, Du Plessis came in at No.6 when South Africa was at 121/4 with AB de Villiers on 35 at the other end, keeping the Proteas’ hopes alive.
Playing only his 10th ODI, Du Plessis put up a fight, scoring 36 off 43 balls, but his efforts went in vain as he fended off the second ball and De Villiers was run out and the Proteas side eventually got bowled out for 172 to suffer a disappointing defeat at the hands of New Zealand by 49 runs in Dhaka on March 25, 2011.
Read Also: South Africa set to tour West Indies in June 2021
Recalling the incident against New Zealand, the 36-year-old said he and his wife received death threats after South Africa’s exit from the 2011 World Cup, as well as, the offensive things were also said on social media, saying the incident made him an introvert.
Du Plessis said in an interview with ESPNCricinfo: “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.”
He signed off by saying, “It makes you introverted towards people and you put a shield up. All players go through this and it forces us to keep our circles very small. It’s why I’ve worked so hard on creating a safe space within our camp.”
(With ESPNCricinfo Inputs)