Arriving at messy situations in bleary-eyed fashion is par for the course for any new parent and so when Faf du Plessis landed in England on Sunday morning after an overnight flight, travelled straight to Lord’s for a net session and then sat down to watch his South Africa team collapse in startling fashion, it was at least not something totally foreign to him.
With four days between the first two Test matches there is precious little time for the tourists to dust themselves down from the 211-run defeat and so Du Plessis’s return after the birth of his daughter is welcome news on what has thus far been a chastening trip.
Shortly after Moeen Ali’s first 10-wicket Test haul had spun England to their first win under Joe Root, Du Plessis sat alongside his short-term replacement, Dean Elgar, to discuss how he intends to rally the troops, delivering some home truths about the bungled catches, needless no balls and crepe-paper batting that proved central to their downfall.
“This Test was a lot of errors and basic mistakes that we don’t normally do as a team – that will cost you,” said Du Plessis, no doubt alluding to the missed chances off Root on five and 16 that, given the new England captain’s eventual 190 in the first innings, proved only a handful of runs shy of the eventual difference between the two sides.
“It’s a straightforward thing to focus on this week: do the basics better for longer and more consistently and then you’ll have moments when you put pressure on the opposition,” said Du Plessis.
The second of three lives for Root, who was also stumped off a no-ball from Kesha Maharaj on 149, burst through the hands of JP Duminy at gully, the 33-year-old who, having gifted his wicket to Mark Wood on the stroke of tea on the fourth day, now appears the likeliest fall guy to allow Du Plessis to slot back into the middle order for Trent Bridge on Friday.
Big hundreds in the series wins over Australia and Sri Lanka – the first of which swelled the mandate of Du Plessis and saw the injured AB de Villiers relinquish the captaincy to his old school friend permanently – have not been able to stem South African chuntering about an unfulfilled career for a left-hander that averages 32.8 from 46 Tests.
“JP will be the first guy to say he needs to score runs for this team,”said Du Plessis. “He knows it’s about runs and if it comes to needing to look to someone else, he will be first to acknowledge it. He’s a crucial part of the senior player group and will put the team first.”
With Kagiso Rabada serving a one-match ban, Du Plessis hinted at playing an extra seamer in Nottingham. The outrageously talented wicketkeeper, Quinton de Kock could open in place of Heino Kuhn with the feisty Chris Morris and the uncapped all-rounder Andile Phehlukwayo drafted in to bolster the attack.
Holding catches is one “non-negotiable” for Du Plessis, while another is a cure for the chronic dose of no-ball-itis that saw Root and Ben Stokes reprieved. The latter was bowled off Morne Morkel in the first innings, and it is a record 13 such blunders now in the seamer’s 75-cap career.
Du Plessis said: “It’s been an issue for a while. I was listening to the commentary for the first time and got some really valuable input. Morne has bowled 12 wickets off no-balls [previously] and it’s something we do focus on. But whatever we are doing, we need to be more firm on it – you cannot take 13 or 14 wickets against a quality team, you are up against it all the time.”
The placement of his size 12 boot aside, Morkel’s form with the ball at Lord’s, where he took seven wickets, is a plus for Du Plessis, not least with Vernon Philander still feeling his way back from an ankle injury, having also suffered a bruised hand from a Jimmy Anderson lifter and a bruised ego from dropping Jonny Bairstow on seven in his second innings.
Rabada’s absence, after the sweary response to getting Stokes out in the first innings was interpreted as a send-off by the officials, is a blow for South Africa. Stokes is someone Du Plessis knows well from their time together playing for Pune in the Indian Premier League and while the running battle the England all-rounder has with his fast bowler will pause for one Test, he believes the competitive nature of both men must not be tempered.
“It’s important [Rabada] plays the way he plays. That creates the best you. I wouldn’t expect him to apologise for the team but [that he did] shows what he’s made of, that’s he desperate to do well for his country,” said Du Plessis.
“Ben is just as fiery, that’s what makes him so competitive and skilful. I called him ‘The Dragon’ in the IPL because that’s what he is, he breathes fire when he gets angry. It’s important to have characters like that, so that’s why I say to Rabada not to lose that for one second. When you play Test cricket you are fighting for your country.”
Such qualities were demonstrated by Du Plessis himself with the century against Australia in Adelaide last November amid an almighty ball-tampering storm and his return for South Africa now, who have two limited-overs series defeats and a failed Champions Trophy to show for their time in England so far, is timely.
With head coach Russell Domingo now the latest to leave the tour for personal reasons, their captain appears ready to get his hands dirty.
