Former South Africa player Shaun Pollock opined on South African wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock announcing his Test retirement so sudden. But he believed that this “might not be the end of the saga.” However, he said that like AB de Villiers, de Kock might come out of retirement after two to three years as well.
Quinton de Kock, 29, in his official statement said that he wants to spend time with his young family, as they are welcoming a child soon. AB de Villiers announced his retirement in 2018, saying he was “tired,” but later decided to return in 2019 and was unofficially asked to come back in 2021 as well.
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Speaking to Cricbuzz, Pollock shared his “funny feeling,” saying: “I have also got a funny feeling that it might not be the end of the saga. I think two maybe three years down the line, much like an ABD (AB de Villiers) discussion because ‘Quinny’ is such a fine player, there might always be calls for maybe him to come back.”
Shaun Pollock again shared: “It is sad and it would have come out as shocking… I think just mentally the bubbles, continuously being away from home are maybe taking its effect on the individuals. ‘Quinny’ is a guy who likes to go hunting, fishing, he likes to spend a bit of time away from the game and he’s not been able to do that.”Then obviously, at this stage of his career, he’s 29, you look at what sort of floats your boat, what is the format that you really get excited about, you know, there’s a lot of T20 leagues where he can just stand and deliver and probably have a lot of fun and probably takes a bit of stress off his body.”
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Meanwhile, Pollock asked the cricket boards to look after players’ health as well.
“So it did come as a surprise but you can understand it. And that’s why we’ve always been concerned about the Test format, we see it as the truest test of the game.”But I think the boards need to be very conscious of how they deal with their players, particularly in this Covid time, how they can make the best of them,” Shaun Pollock concluded.
