‘Warner was a bully, don’t have time for bullies': Du Plessis' explosive remark

It was only four years ago that Australia and South Africa squared off in a Test series of high-quality cricket which unfortunately would go down in the history books as one of the most controversial bilaterals ever. The reason? The infamous 'sandpaper gate' that saw Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft getting banned from all forms of cricket for a year. A lifetime captaincy ban was slapped on Warner, the then vice-captain of Australia. But before the ball-tampering saga in the third Test in Cape Town, the four-match series was in the news for the verbal battle between Warner and Quinton de Kock that nearly resulted in a physical tussle.

A lot has changed since then but the scars of the series still remain. Faf du Plessis, who was the captain of South Africa at that time, in his book, Faf: Through Fire, which went on sale this month, has shed light on the events during the series. Du Plessis didn't blame Bancroft, who was the one caught rubbing sandpaper on the ball during the third Test. Neither did he have nasty things to say about Steve Smith, Australia's captain at that time.

However, du Plessis was not so kind to Warner. He referred to him as a 'bully'. "He was a bully," Du Plessis told BBC. "I don't have time for bullies."

One gets the feeling that du Plessis' comments on Warner had a lot to do with the happenings of the first Test in Durban rather than the ball-tampering incident in the third.

Warner, who reportedly sledged South Africa wicketkeeper-batter Quinton de Kock for nearly an hour during the Durban Test was even involved in a heated argument in the tunnel. During the break when the players were making their way into the dressing room, Warner was seen charging towards de Kock in the staircase, shouting, while his teammates made desperate attempts to calm him down. The leaked CCTV footage had become the talk of the town which had also shown de Plessis coming out of the showers in a towel after he had heard loud noises just outside the dressing room.

The actual reasons for that altercation never came to light but various media reports suggested that both players abused each other's family members.

Australia had won the first Test by 118 runs but South Africa came back and won three on the trot to take the series 3-1.

Sharing his thoughts on the book, du Plessis said, "My story is about failure. I didn't want to write a cricket book. I wouldn't have started if that was the aim.

"I wanted to write a book about leadership, about relationships, about struggle. That's what this is about. I wanted to create something that people would be able to relate to.

"They might see me as an elite athlete and cricket captain, but I was a person who was filled with self-doubt and insecurity. And that's OK.

"I wanted to give people things they could then say, 'I know what that feels like'. I hope this connects with people even if they aren't cricket fans."

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