Quinton de Kock retires from Test cricket: Details here
South African wicket-keeper-batter Quinton de Kock announced a sudden retirement from Test cricket on Thursday. In a lengthy statement, the star batter said he wants "to spend more time with his growing family". de Kock, who played against India in Centurion, was supposed to miss the second and third Tests against India (paternity leave). The 29-year-old will continue to play white-ball cricket.
Why does it matter?
de Kock was South Africa's temporary Test captain at the start of 2021. The Proteas beat Sri Lanka 2-0 at home, however, they lost in Pakistan in his leadership. de Kock had qualms about restrictions of bubble life amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, he was rested from South Africa's ODIs against Sri Lanka and the Netherlands. de Kock ended up retiring from Test cricket.
Not an easy decision: de Kock
"This isn't a decision that I have come to very easily. I have taken a lot of time to think about what my future looks like and what needs to take priority in my life now that Sasha and I are about to welcome our first child into this world and look to grow our family beyond tha," de Kock said in a statement.
de Kock will continue to play limited-overs cricket
de Kock will be available for selection in white-ball cricket. "This isn't the end of my career as a Protea, I'm fully committed to white-ball cricket and representing my country to the best of my ability for the foreseeable future. All the best to my team-mates for the remainder of this Test series against India. See you in the ODIs and T20s," he added.
A look at de Kock's Test career
de Kock made his Test debut in February 2014 against Australia at Port Elizabeth. He finishes with 3,300 runs from 54 matches at a remarkable average of 38.82. He slammed six hundreds and 22 half-centuries. de Kock has the second-most dismissals by a South African wicket-keeper in Test cricket (232). He is only behind the legendary Mark Boucher (555).
A look at his notable feats in Tests
de Kock is one of the few South African cricketers with over 2,000 runs and 100 wicket-keeping dismissals in Test cricket. He also holds the record for scoring over 300 runs (380) and registering 15 or more dismissals (23) in a single series (SA vs England, 2019/20). de Kock registered five consecutive 50+ scores in 2016 (82, 50, 84, 64, and 104).
de Kock averaged 63.18 in 2016
de Kock was on a roll in 2016. He smashed 695 runs from eight Tests at an incredible average of 63.18, his best in a calendar year. The left-handed batter smashed 2 hundreds and 5 fifties. In November, he slammed a match-winning century in Horbart as SA won their third consecutive series Down Under. The Proteas won the series 2-1.
