Faf du Plessis took over as captain of the Royal Challengers Bangalore ahead of the IPL 2022 season, and he had a lot to live up to.
Faf demonstrated exceptional leadership qualities in his first season as RCB captain, leading the team to the IPL Playoffs.
Faf revealed what motivated him to lead the team with a sense of purpose during the second episode of the RCB Podcast Season 2.
"As a cricketer, I think the moment that reaffirmed to me and told me that I belong at this level and that I want to be at this level... was (the moment) like, you belong here. So that was the point at which I realised, this is what I want to do. Yes, I became extremely goal-oriented. After that, I became the Proteas, or the Heartbeat, if you will. I knew everything there was to know about Cricket South Africa.
"Then, in this new chapter of my life, I discovered this new purpose, and especially now with RCB, as I mentioned, you've got something that really lights your desire inside you. Yes, I want to do something special, which gives you a new sense of purpose because I don't want to play just to play. There's always something that drives me more than just the Rands or whatever, "Faf stated.
Faf was incredible not only as a leader, but also as the RCB's batting captain. Faf scored 468 runs in 16 matches, including three fifties, the highest of which was 96. In fact, Faf finished seventh among IPL 2022's top run scorers.
Faf, on the other hand, had to go through the proverbial learning and unlearning process as he matured into the role of captain. Faf attributed this to the days he spent with the Chennai Super Kings observing proven leaders such as former South African captain Graeme Smith, MS Dhoni, and Stephen Fleming.
"I've always had this leadership perspective of learning from great leaders; it (leadership) has always fascinated me. Graeme Smith was the captain of the South African team when I first joined. Wow, this guy has an incredible presence when he speaks - like this big, blinding roar at you, and he just dominated the room while speaking. So I thought, that's a leader, right? "He stated.
When Faf joined CSK in 2011, he was quickly exposed to a completely different school of leadership, that of MS Dhoni.
"At a youngish stage in my career, I was given the opportunity to travel to Chennai. Stephen Fleming is a great leader in the game, obviously for New Zealand cricket as well. His being a man manager, a guy who only works on relationships, was a unique aspect. And I go, Wow, that's impressive. During my first season at CSK, I sat next to him (Fleming) and just asked him questions about captaincy and leadership, trying to learn everything I could from him. And then you add MS to the mix, and you think, Wow, this guy's tactically odd to read the game this way. And you think, Okay, he's a good captain.
"Even with all of that, I think what was really good for me to go through was the conviction that I am not going to be Graeme Smith as a captain, Stephen Fleming as a captain, or MS Dhoni as a captain. I need to be myself in order to be true to who I am as a person. Because if you're not being yourself, people will see through it, maybe not when you're doing well, but definitely when you're under pressure or underperforming "Faf stated.