Faf du Plessis leads St. Lucia Kings from the front with a brilliant half-century in an emphatic victory

If Faf du Plessis’ 46-run-innings against Barbados Royals was simply a prelude to greatness, his mind-boggling 57 against Trinbago Knight Riders was a blazing testimony to his hard-hitting prowess. Faf led from the front for his team in the ongoing Caribbean Premier League, smashing an exquisite 57 from just 36 balls.

Opening the innings for St Lucia Kings, he started making headway in the powerplay after a reticent start against Akeal Hosein. The RCB captain started his blitz against Jaden Carmichael where he launched him for 13 runs in that one over, smashing him for consecutive balls, the first one going over the extra cover with the next one being launched over long-on.

Hosein’s poise against Faf didn’t hold on for long either as the latter swatted him over mid-on after an exquisite display of footwork. He brought up his half-century against Hosein in an unexpected manner as the ball caught a sharp whiff of his inside edge before flying to the ropes.

He capped his innings off in grand fashion with a stellar piece of timing, smashing the ball over Hosein’s head as it raced to the ropes. Faf’s brilliant knock came to an abrupt halt after he was outdone by Andre Russell’s slow bounce but by then he had already amassed 57 runs, enough to fuel his team to a win that earned him the Player of the Match award.