Quinton de Kock announces sudden retirement from Test cricket
Quinton de Kock announced his retirement from Test cricket
|| Courtesy - Twitter
South Africa wicket-keeper batsman, Quinton de Kock on Thursday, December announced his retirement from Test cricket with immediate effect. De Kock's announcement came hours after Team India thrashed South Africa by 113 runs in the first Test of the three-match series in Centurion on Thursday.
Hours after India handed a resounding 113-run defeat to South Africa in the first Test of the three-match series in Centurion, Proteas wicket-keeper batsman, Quinton de Kock announced his decision to retire from the longest format of the game. The left-hand batsman was expected to miss the remaining fixtures in the Test series against IndiaĀ as he and his wife Sasha are expecting the birth of their first-born child inĀ the coming days.
However, theĀ decisionĀ of De Kock to quit playing the red-ball format for South Africa shocked the entire cricket fraternity. In a statement issued by Cricket South Africa (CSA), De KockĀ confirmedĀ that he remains available to play white-ball cricket for South Africa.
In the statement issued by De Kock,Ā the 29-year-old further reckoned that,Ā it wasn't an easy decision and he had to draw early curtains to TestĀ cricket to be with his family as they are expecting their first-born child in a few days of time.
"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," De Kock stated.
"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," he added.
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.
ā Cricket South Africa (@OfficialCSA) December 30, 2021
Full statement: https://t.co/Tssys5FJMI pic.twitter.com/kVO8d1e0Ex
De Kock made his Test debut for South Africa against Australia in 2014 and represented the Proteas in 54 matches, and has scored 3,300 runs at an average of 38.82.Ā He also notched up six centuries and 22 half-centuries during his Test career for South Africa. The wicket-keeper batsman further stated that he is fully committed to white-ball cricket.
"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.
"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," the statement read.
