South Africa's Faf du Plessis retires from Test cricket

JOHANNESBURG: Former South African captain Faf du Plessis on Wednesday announced his retirement from cricket's longest format, Tests, but said that he will continue to play white-ball cricket for his country.

Plessis, 36, said in a statement on his Instagram account that he would continue to be available for One-Day and Twenty20 internationals.

"The next two years are ICC T20 World Cup years. Because of this, my focus is shifting to this format and I want to play as much of it as possible around the world so that I can be the best player I can possibly be," he said.

The 36-year-old player said that he "strongly" believes that he has a lot to offer to South Africa in this format.

The cricketer also clarified that his retirement does not mean that ODI cricket was "no longer in the plans" adding that he is "just making T20 cricket the priority in the short-term".

The former South African skipper said that his heart was "clear" and that it was the right time to "walk into a new chapter".

"It has been an honour to play for my country in all formats of the game, but the time has come for me to retire from Test cricket," said the batsman.

The former captain said that he will be in conversation with Cricket South Africa, the country's governing body for the sport, over the next couple of months to find a "solution that works" for both of them.

Du Plessis had captained South Africa in 36 of his 69 Test matches, winning 18 and losing 15.