Former South African skipper Faf du Plessis is set to undergo surgery for his tennis elbow after withdrawing from the Caribbean Premier League at the mid-way stage of the tournament. The 39-year-old has been suffering from the same injury for the past couple of years but was playing using cortisone injections as a temporary solution.
Faf du Plessis has been one of the greatest all-format batsmen in modern times with him playing an important role for South Africa in International Cricket. The Right-handed opener has been playing his trade in the global T20 leagues with him being one of the most sought-after T20 players in franchise cricket.
Speaking in the post-match presentation, Faf du Plessis was happy with Saint Lucia Kings’ position in the league but was disappointed to leave the tournament mid-way due to an injury and revealed that he played with a tennis elbow for the last two years and asserted that the elbow injury requires surgery as the cortisone is not good for his body anymore with him already taking eight injections in the last two years.
“Happy with the results but obviously sad [that] I’m leaving at a crucial stage in the tournament when you feel like the team can start doing some really good things in the tournament.
“For me, the challenge with the elbow is I’ve played with it (tennis elbow) for almost two years; I’ve had eight cortisone injections into my elbow. So I’m at a stage where the cortisone is not good for my body anymore; so that’s why the operation is always the last resort. I didn’t want to do it, but [have] time off now. I’ve got to basically go from here to get off the plane into the hospital to get the surgery done,” Faf du Plessis said.
Faf du Plessis has been playing cricket continuously in 2023, starting from the inaugural edition of SA20, followed by Indian Premier League, Major Cricket League, and the ongoing CPL 2023, which may have led to the aggravation of the injury and the former Proteas batter will look to make a strong comeback after the injury, as many believe that he stands a chance to make it into the South Africa team for the 2024 T20 World Cup.
The opening batter has represented South Africa in 50 T20Is since making his debut in 2012. He has scored 1528 runs at a strike rate of 134.38. His value has risen with his performances in various T20 franchise leagues and will look to grab the opportunity to be part of the Proteas setup going into the T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies.