He may have been wearing a non-Chennai Super Kings jersey for the first in the Indian Premier League. He may have been leading an IPL franchise for the first time. But the pressure didn’t tell on Faf du Plessis as his sensational hitting in the latter half of his innings piloted Royal Challengers Bangalore past the 200-run mark in its IPL 2022 opener against Punjab Kings.
Du Plessis’ 88 (57b, 3x4, 7x6) and his 118-run partnership off just 61 balls with Virat Kohli (41 n.o., 29b, 1x4, 2x6) set the tone for a high total as IPL action returned to the DY Patil Stadium after more than a decade. Dinesh Karthik (32 n.o., 14b, 3x4, 3x6) provided the final kick as RCB piled up 205 for two in 20 overs.
