Virat Kohli stepped down as India T20I captain after 50 matches at helm.
India’s hopes for a semi-final berth ended after New Zealand defeated Afghanistan on Sunday, given that the Men in Blue, who were considered to be one of the favorites to win the trophy, had lost both of their first two matches to Pakistan and New Zealand respectively.
Faf du Plessis admitted that seeing India getting knocked out is not something he thought he would see.
"Definitely not, I had India as favorite… one of the favorites for the tournament but this T20 World Cup is a tough one, isn’t it? There are so many teams and it is just straight to the semi-finals. If you have one bad game, you can be out of the competition so it's really tough to make that final four. But I would have India and West Indies in the final four," Du Plessis said in a video shared by Abu Dhabi T10 league.
Along with this ouster from the T20 World Cup 2021, also ended the T20I captaincy reign on Virat Kohli, who had announced before the beginning of the tournament that he will step down from the captaincy after the end of the T20 World Cup.
Appointed captain of India's limited-overs sides in 2017, Kohli brought something unique to the side, mentioned Du Plessis, and explained how that would define his legacy as skipper of the team's shortest format.
"He has been the captain for a long time so first of all, that’s a great achievement. To be in the job for so long, his record is very strong. He has led that team very well. He’s had a very good side captain but I think Virat has brought something different to the Indian side, which would probably be his legacy. The fighting spirit, the passion that he carries really well. That is the biggest asset, that blueprint he would have left on the team," added Du Plessis.
India will now host New Zealand at home for three T20Is and two Test matches.