T20 World Cup 2021: Quinton de Kock pulls out of West Indies match citing personal reasons

It remains to be seen if Quinton de Kock will be allowed to play upcoming matches.

Quinton de Kock
Quinton de Kock. (Photo Source: Twitter)

Quinton de Kock has pulled out of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 game against West Indies on Tuesday citing personal reasons. The decision came after Cricket South Africa (CSA) unanimously issued a directive that cricketers should take a knee ahead of every game in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Until now, CSA had agreed that team members could make their own decisions as was the case during South Africa‘s tournament opener against Australia. However, it had an “unintended perception of disparity or lack of support for” the BLM movement which forced the board to take a uniform stand at a time when SJN hearings are going on.

Quinton de Kock had been a notable exception, who chose not to offer his support to the worldwide movement. When quizzed about the same, de Kock refused to explain his inaction.

“My reason? I’ll keep it to myself. It’s my own, personal opinion. It’s everyone’s decision; no-one’s forced to do anything, not in life. That’s the way I see things,” Quinton de Kock said in a press conference during a Test series in St. Lucia.

Advertisement

Pommie Mbangwa slams Quinton de Kock

Quinton de Kock’s action caused a lot of uproar on social media and cricketer-turned-commentator Pommie Mbangwa didn’t hold himself back from expressing his thoughts.

Speaking on air, the former cricketer said:

“Excuse me for being political because some will say it is being political but I cannot shed my skin. I hope, I hope that the discussion at the very least can be about how to be united, about something that everybody agrees on. This is also in the hope that there is an agreement in that regard.”

Former West Indies captain Darren Sammy also joined the conversation saying that he is baffled at Quinton de Kock’s decision.

“Yeah, sometimes I don’t understand why is it so difficult to support this movement if you understand what it stands for. That’s just my opinion. What my kind have been through. There are other issues affecting the world but I don’t understand why it’s so difficult,” he concluded.