South Africa wants Australia to return to its aggressive approach
South Africa captain Faf du Plessis says Australia's aggressive attitude on the field should not be sacrificed despite the fall-out over the ball-tampering controversy.
Key points:
- Faf du Plessis highlights Australia was less aggressive on the field in the recent ODI series
- Du Plessis believes Australia should not stray from its traditional approach
- He says facing Australia brings out "the beast" in his game
Du Plessis said the challenge of playing Australia still brought out "the beast" in him ahead of Saturday's one-off Twenty20 international on the Gold Coast.
But he admitted there was a big difference on the field since the sandpaper debacle in South Africa last March, suggesting Australia was now content with letting its "cricket do the talking", which was much to his disappointment.
Australia has backed away from its hardline stance and adopted a gentler player policy under new coach Justin Langer in the wake of what occurred in South Africa.
Captain Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner were handed 12-month bans and opener Cameron Bancroft a nine-month suspension for their roles in the incident, sparking a scathing review of Australia's win-at-all-costs mentality.
But du Plessis believed Australia's aggressive on-field attitude was its strength and urged it to be authentic and not stray from what worked, as long as it was within the rules.
"There is a transition they are going through at the moment where they are trying to build up a new culture however long that will take," he said.
"But I believe you should never take away your uniqueness or strength. Obviously there are laws which you can't cross but if your strength is to get inside guys' faces then use that.
"But don't become someone you are not. When guys are not authentic they are not the best cricketers they can be."
Du Plessis has savoured his clashes with Australia and hoped Saturday's Twenty20 international in Carrara again brought out the best in him despite the hosts' new-found attitude.
"I really enjoy the challenge of playing against Australia. It's a very competitive game and that brings the beast out of me," he said.
"Australia is probably the hardest to play against because they were the fiercest.
"Comparing that to now you can see they are obviously trying to minimise it more and let the cricket do the talking.
"That is where the game is heading anyway. Chirping is not a big part of cricket … there has been big difference in the way they talk in the field."
South Africa on Saturday is set to unleash fast bowler Chris Morris, Farhaan Behardien and Tabraiz Shamsi, the only members of the Proteas' squad who did not feature in their 2-1 one-day international series win over Australia.
AAP
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ABC .net
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