Surprisingly, on Thursday, South Africa’s wicket-keeper batter, Quinton de Kock has decided to announce his retirement from Test cricket with immediate effect. He made the announcement came hours after India registered a 113-run win over South Africa in the opening Test of the three-match series in Centurion on Thursday. Cricket South Africa (CSA) released a statement by De Kock on Thursday conveying his decision to retire from Tests.
In a statement announcing the decision, Quinton de Kock said, “This is not 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 that. My family is everything to me and I want to have the time and space to be able to be with them during this new and exciting chapter of our lives.”
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He further elaborated, “I love Test cricket and I love representing my country and all that it comes with. I’ve enjoyed the ups and the downs, the celebrations, and even the disappointments, but now I’ve found something that I love even more. In life, you can buy almost everything except for time, and right now, it’s time to do right by the people that mean the most to me.”
BREAKING: #Proteas wicket-keeper batsman, Quinton de Kock has announced his retirement from Test cricket with immediate effect, citing his intentions to spend more time with his growing family.
Full statement: https://t.co/Tssys5FJMI pic.twitter.com/kVO8d1e0Ex
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) December 30, 2021
Quinton de Kock thanked all his teammates, supports staff, family and friends. He said, “I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been a part of my Test cricket journey from the very beginning. To my coaches, teammates, the various management teams, and my family and friends – I couldn’t have shown up as I did without your support.”
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He further added, “This is not 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 teammates for the remainder of this Test series against India. See you in the ODIs and T20s. Quinny.”
Quinton De Kock made his debut in Test cricket against Australia in Gqeberha in 2014. In 54 matches, he had amassed 3300 runs with the highest score of 141 not out, at an average of 38.82 and strike rate of 70.93. He has smashed six centuries and 22 half-centuries under his belt along with 232 dismissals, which includes 221 catches and 11 stumpings.
