In a legendary move, South African batter Faf du Plessis, who has been a part of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for 14 years, has announced that he will not be a part of the IPL 2026 auction. Instead, he will be playing in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) next year, thereby opening up a new chapter in his career.
Faf du Plessis made the formal announcement about withdrawing his name from the Abu Dhabi auction, which is going to be held on December 16, through his social media post.
During his IPL career, the right-handed batsman played for four teams: Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Rising Pune Supergiants, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), and Delhi Capitals (DC).
He scored 4,773 runs at an average of 35.10 and a strike rate of 135.79, including 39 fifties in 154 matches. He made some notable contributions, like a total of 633 runs in CSK’s 2021 title-winning season, followed by an astonishing 730 runs in the 2023 campaign while leading RCB, one of the finest T20 captaincy seasons in recent history.
The choice was motivated by personal well-being and timing, as du Plessis pointed out, not just commercial considerations. Having spent over ten years in the IPL juggernaut, he believed it was right to relax, better control his workload, and find a different challenge in a fresh setting.
The PSL, where du Plessis once played for Peshawar Zalmi and Quetta Gladiators, gives him a chance to continue playing competitive T20 cricket under possibly less heavy demand than the Indian Premier League.
He stated unequivocally in his statement that this was not India’s parting farewell. He noted that fans will probably see him again, therefore implying a future comeback to the IPL remains conceivable.
