Playing 100 One-Day Internationals is a special moment for every cricketer and there is absolutely no doubt that any player will want to make the moment a memorable one. But Faf du Plessis missed the chance to make his 100th ODI appearance for the Proteas worth remembering as he could score only 24 runs in the third match of the ongoing series against Sri Lanka.
However, the right-handed batsman made amends for it in the ongoing fourth ODI with a monumental knock of 185. The 32-year old came to the wicket in the third over after the loss of Hashim Amla (1) and remained on the pitch till 49.2 overs to help South Africa post a mammoth 367 for 5 in the allotted 50 overs. He completed ton off just 89 balls and continued playing his shots even more freely after surpassing the three-digit mark.
His brilliant innings came to an end in the final over, when he was caught on the boundary while looking for a six that would have taken him past Gary Kirsten’s 188, the highest individual one-day international score by a South African.
Here is how Twitter reacted to du Plessis’ batting masterclass:
High quality @faf1307 from a high quality guy #SAvSL
— Brendan Taylor (@BrendanTaylor86) February 7, 2017
Faf du Plessis today – 185
Sri Lanka's 3 ODI total – 181, 186, 163
Chandimal's runs this tour – 180— Daniel Alexander (@daniel86cricket) February 7, 2017
What a brilliant innings from @faf1307 . Missed a double but a memorable
185 .#SAvSL— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) February 7, 2017
Faf Du Plessis: 185
Just missed Highest ever score by South African in ODI by 3 runs
Best:
Gary Kirsten: 188* vs UAE in 1996
— Broken Cricket (@BrokenCricket) February 7, 2017
Faf du Plessis falls for the second highest score by a South African in an ODI. No-one can top Gary Kirsten's 188*…. yet. #SAvSL
— Firdose Moonda (@FirdoseM) February 7, 2017
May be one of the most underrated Batsmen of the era @faf1307.. What an innings.. @OfficialCSA #Faf100 #ProteaFire
— ????? ? (@i_m_rahul_r) February 7, 2017
Bliksem Faf! That was proper ??#185 @faf1307
— Dale Steyn (@DaleSteyn62) February 7, 2017
Previous match he reminded us how great he is by extraordinary catches he pulled,and today his performance was awesome.@faf1307#ProteaFire
— NdoniYamaZilankatha (@NobuhleMncub) February 7, 2017
What a knock @faf1307 !! Always a treat to watch Faf and @ABdeVilliers17 batting together and making big partnerships. Top class!
— Robin (@robinvm19) February 7, 2017