The veteran South African wicket-keeper, Quinton de Kock on Saturday took the knee before his team’s T20 World Cup 2021 match against Sri Lanka in Sharjah, having pulled out of Proteas’ last game after refusing to perform the gesture. Alongside De Kock, who returned to the playing XI for the Super 12 game against Sri Lanka, South African players and the on-field umpires were also seen taking the knee, in support of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ (BLM) movement.
The huge controversy was witnessed by the cricketing fraternity before South Africa’s game against West Indies on Tuesday after Cricket South Africa (CSA) issued a sudden directive that all the players need to take the knee before every match of the ongoing tournament. Quinton De Kock decided not to comply and eventually pulled out of the game against the defending champions, which the Proteas won by eight wickets.
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On Thursday however, Quinton de Kock was seen coming back to the playing XI of the team and he eventually said he is fine taking a knee if it “educates others” and that he was deeply hurt at being called a racist for not making the gesture against West Indies. Here is the video of De Kock taking teh knee ahead of the Sri Lanka game:
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Quinton De Kock clarified that he was not a racist and made it clear that his displeasure was with the timing of CSA’s diktat. In a statement issued by CSA, De Kock said, “I am deeply sorry for all the hurt, confusion and anger that I have caused. I was quiet on this very important issue until now. But I feel I have to explain myself a little bit. There always seems to be a drama when we go to World Cups. That isn’t fair.”
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He further added, “I just want to thank my teammates for their support, especially my captain. Temba (Bavuma). People might not recognise, but he is a flipping amazing leader. If he and the team, and South Africa, will have me, I would love nothing more than to play cricket for my country again.”
Bavuma, the first black player to lead the side, had offered support to Quinton de Kock after the win over West Indies and stated that “it wasn’t ideal” to get a directive on taking the knee hours before the start of the match.
