We hear too much about cricket being a team game for individuals, but it has never been more true than this week.
Quinton de Kock is the pertinent individual, and for nothing he has done on the field. De Kock’s refusal to play in South Africa’s match against West Indies in Dubai on Tuesday rather than take a knee, as the team had been ordered to by CSA, rocked the world game.
He has since apologised and agreed to do as he has been told, and the show can go on with him. But not without consequence. More than eight years ago, De Kock came to the international game as a reluctant celebrity.
Surely he yearns for anonymity now more than ever. He will be the focus of intense attention from the moment he emerges from the dressing room in Sharjah on Saturday.
Every one of his moves – and non-moves – no matter how mere, will be poured over and analysed to within a smidgen, or beyond, of its relevance or perceived relevance.—Agencies