Quinton de Kock appeared to be a player uncertain about where his next run would come from. If one didn’t know better, they might have thought that the man looking into the camera from a Kolkata hotel room on Friday was experiencing the worst form of his life.
He gave off the impression of someone who hadn’t slept for days because he was troubled by the reasons behind his repeated dismissals. And technically, that’s accurate – De Kock has indeed been getting out at the World Cup, with scores of 100, 109, 20, 4, 174, 24, and 114.
Only Rohit Sharma has scored more hundreds in a single edition of the tournament, with five in 2019. The only other player with four such centuries is Kumar Sangakkara, achieved in 2015. After 33 games, De Kock is the leading run-scorer in this World Cup, amassing 545 runs. His average of 77.85 places him fourth among the best averages. His 174 against Bangladesh last Tuesday at the same Wankhede Stadium where India dismissed Sri Lanka for 55 on Thursday is the highest score of the tournament. Only Sharma and David Warner have hit more sixes than De Kock’s 18.
So why did he appear distracted? Why was his expression blank, his posture weary? Could it be that De Kock was anxious about his next possible failure? Hoping fervently that it wouldn’t occur against India at Eden Gardens on Sunday? Or in the semifinals? Or, for South Africans, in the final?
None of these questions can be answered by those familiar with De Kock’s past press conferences. The truth is, when he interacts with the media, unlike when he’s on the field or presumably, when he’s fishing, he doesn’t seem fully present. Clearly, it’s something he has little interest in. He seems completely, uninterestedly, irreversibly bored with reporters’ questions. So he presents a semblance of himself and waits for it to be over.
This helps explain why he didn’t attend a press conference after scoring 174 – reporters were told he was on doctor’s orders as he had been exhausted by his innings. He also didn’t hold a press conference after his 114 against New Zealand in Pune on Wednesday, with no explanation provided. This isn’t a complaint; he was under no obligation to tolerate people like us.
De Kock’s job is to play cricket, and he does it better than most people on Earth. His job isn’t to speak to reporters. Some players are less reluctant to do so, and a few are even skilled at it. But those reporters with sufficient experience will know that De Kock is in esteemed company: Jacques Kallis used to look at us with empty eyes and offer little.
Kallis famously retired from Test cricket on Christmas Day in 2013, just hours before a Test against India at Kingsmead. De Kock, similarly, exited the longest format during a series against India in December 2012. However, he has given us an entire World Cup to get used to the idea that he won’t be playing ODIs anymore. So, given his current run of form, has he reconsidered?
“I’m firm in my decision,” De Kock stated. “It’s the end of my 50-over career. There have been a few discussions about it, but I don’t think it’s going to happen.”
Really? Even though he’s at the peak of his game? “At this point, I don’t see it happening. But, you never know. Strange things happen in life. It could be a possibility, but I don’t think so. Some good youngsters are emerging who will probably take my place once I leave, and they will have to handle national duties. That’s that.”
His choice of words is significant: “they will have to handle national duties.” De Kock, it seems, has little regard for the concept of representation. Too many causes, both national and otherwise, are paid lip service in sports. But De Kock plays cricket for himself, his family’s financial benefit, and his teammates. That’s it. Does he even enjoy it? That’s hard to determine.
For example, achieving parity in World Cup centuries with another renowned left-handed wicketkeeper-batter didn’t seem to excite him: “I always enjoyed watching ‘Sanga’ growing up and playing with him, and he is one of my good friends now. But I wouldn’t say I wanted to be like him. I want to be myself. That’s about it on that subject.”
De Kock is an unadorned professional, to the fullest extent possible, and he should be commended for his refusal to engage in the highbrow nonsense that he and his peers have an obligation to be more. They do not. De Kock’s reluctance to take a knee during the 2021 T20 World Cup to support the cause of social justice, which justifiably angered many, can be seen in this context. In terms of the bigger picture, it was the wrong move. But De Kock frequently doesn’t see the bigger picture, primarily due to the privilege of not having to view it from inside the professional sports bubble. All he sees is the ball. And he hits it hard and far. This level of focus, while fraught with broader risks, helps ensure success.
Just over a month from his 31st birthday, and with T20Is as his only remaining commitment to South Africa after this World Cup, De Kock has several years ahead of him to hit the ball hard and far in T20 leagues, ensuring he never has to work a day in his life after his final match for the Azerbaijan Anacondas, or wherever.
However, for now, that unwavering focus is directed at one thing only. And it’s not another century or three. “I’d rather win the World Cup and score no runs than score all the runs and not win the World Cup,” De Kock declared.
He has played a significant role in South Africa’s six victories in seven matches, fostering rising and increasingly anxious hopes among their fans that this time, they can reach uncharted territory: the final, and possibly the championship. De Kock is participating in his seventh World Cup in both white-ball formats, with the previous six ending in various stages of disaster for the South Africans. What has made this campaign different so far?
“I’m not too sure,” is perhaps De Kock’s most frequently used phrase. “We are just playing really good cricket at the moment.” That’s another. “We are not trying to overthink things. We are not trying to reinvent the wheel. We are just trying to do the simple things really well. That’s the key to why we’ve been successful.”
As for Sunday’s match against India in Kolkata, a contest between the two top teams in the tournament in front of one of cricket’s great crowds, teams brimming with talent, skill, and confidence, and with 13 wins out of 14 matches.
“It’s just another game of cricket, I guess,” he said, but tempered that statement: “Every game now, counting down to my last few, is special. I’ve played at Eden Gardens quite a bit, and playing India in India is quite a spectacle. If they could, they would have every single fan in India at that game, and they are going to be a handful. That’s one
