Racial divide rears head as cricket star rejects Black Lives gesture
A question mark remains over Quinton de Kock’s further participation at the Twenty20 World Cup after his decision to skip South Africa’s eight wicket win over the West Indies in defiance of a team order to take the knee.
The Proteas got their World Cup campaign back on track with the convincing victory at Dubai on Tuesday but de Kock was the major talking point after the former skipperās no show.
Captain Temba Bavuma revealed at the toss that ākeeper-batsman de Kock had withdrawn from the game due to āpersonal reasonsā just hours after Cricket South Africa (CSA) had ordered the team to take the knee before their remaining matches in support of Black Lives Matter.
South Africa recovered to restrict the Windies to 8-143 before cruising to 2-144 with 10 balls to spare with Aiden Markram not out 51 off 26 balls and Rassie van der Dussen unbeaten on 43.
But de Kockās decision may yet still prove a distraction with the player facing potential sanctions.
āThe ā¦(CSA) has noted the personal decision by South African wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock not to ātake the kneeā ahead of Tuesdayās game against the West Indies,ā CSA said in a statement.
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āThe board will await a further report from team management before deciding on the next steps.ā
Asked if the team would seek a replacement for de Kock, Bavuma said: āI donāt know how far itās going to develop.
āIt wouldnāt be my decision whether to replace Quinton or to get a substitute.
āBut as far as we stand, Quinton is still one of the playersā¦so whatever support that he needsā¦weāll be there for him.ā
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De Kock had declined to take a knee in the past calling it āmy own personal opinionā.
āAs a team, we obviously were surprised and taken aback by the news,ā Bavuma said of de Kockās withdrawal on Tuesday.
āQuinton is a big player for the teamā¦ not having that at my disposal as a captain was obviously something I wasnāt looking forward to.
āIn saying that, Quinton is an adult. We respect his decision.ā
CSA said it decided to force players to take the knee after concerns were raised over the ādifferent posturesā taken ahead of warm-up matches and the teamās opening five wicket World Cup loss to Australia on Saturday.
Some members of South Africaās team had taken the knee with their fists raised, others stood with fists raised while de Kock, Anrich Nortje and Heinrich Klaasen stood with their hands by their side before recent matches.
āThe board felt it was imperative for the team to be seen taking a united and consistent stand against racism, especially given (South Africaās) history,ā CSA said.
Despite the de Kock drama, Dwaine Pretorious (3-17) helped South Africa restrict the two-time champions with Evin Lewis top scoring for the Windies with 56 off 35 balls ā one more than the teamās paltry total in their opening loss to England at the same venue.
In reply, de Kockās replacement Reeza Hendricks hit 39 before Markram and van der Dussen guided South Africa to victory with an unbroken 83-run stand.
The Windiesā title defence appears in trouble after their second straight loss.
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