South African batsman Faf du Plessis announced that he had stepped down from his role as captain of the South African men's Test & Twenty20 (T20) teams with immediate effect.

In a statement issued on Monday, du Plessis said his decision was made in the best interests of South African cricket but was one of the toughest he had ever had to make.

"After the 2019 ICC World Cup, I made the decision to continue in my role as captain while the team went through a rebuilding phase following the retirement of some key senior players and a complete overhaul of the coaching staff that we had worked with until then. It was important to me that I stayed to help the team find its feet and plot a new way forward while assisting in identifying the next generation of leaders within the players’ group during a time of turbulence in SA cricket," the statement read in part.

Du Plessis, 35, added that the last season of his captaincy had been the most challenging to date as he had a lot of off-field issues that he had to focus on. He, however, did not elaborate on the off-field issues.

"I have strived to lead the team with dignity and authenticity during exhilarating highs and devastating lows. I have given my everything during my tenure. I have never been one to throw in the towel and do believe I am putting the team first and believe we have to stick through the tough times to get to the good times. In a perfect world I would have loved to lead the team in the Tests for the rest of the season as well as the T20 World Cup, but sometimes the most important attribute of a leader is to be selfless," du Plessis said.

Du Plessis confirmed that he will continue to play in all three formats of the game and will offer his knowledge and time to the team's new leaders.

CSA acting CEO Jacques Faul paid tribute to du Plessis for his contributions to South African cricket and his leadership of the teams.

"His latest decision reminds us all of the manner in which he has always put the team first. Following the retirement of Vernon Philander he and Dale Steyn are the last survivors of the golden generation that took the Proteas to the top of the Test rankings and he still has a vital role to play as we bridge the gap between one generation and the next."

Du Plessis had captained South Africa 112 times in both formats and one-day internationals (ODI) since December 2012. In January, Cricket South Africa announced Quinton de Kock will replace du Plessis as captain of the ODI team.

He scored 5,101 runs in all formats as captain registering 11 centuries and 28 half-centuries in 112 appearances. Some of the famous results under his leadership were the 5-0 inbound ODI series and 2-1 outbound Test series victories against Australia in 2016.

Source: Cricket South Africa