Published: Apr 18, 2016, 08:02 AM (IST)
Edited: Apr 18, 2016, 03:18 PM (IST)
There are many young players who play well, then there are some youngsters who keep going for a short period of time. And then there is Quinton de Kock. At 23, de Kock seems to have the world at his feet. At an age when most players try and earn their place in the team, de Kock is probably one of those very few players who is a regular, and even more, performing like he has been around forever. Having already played over 50 ODI’s and 29 T20I’s, de Kock has already surpassed the stats of many players who have failed to reach , at the end of their career. And his recent outing in IPL 2016 for Delhi Daredevils against Royal Challengers Bangalore was phenomenal, where he scored 108 to lead his side to victory and cementing his place as the best young batsman in the world. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Delhi Daredevils, IPL 2016, Match 11 at Bangalore
Words can never be enough to describe his knock against RCB at Bangalore. In the recently concluded 20 World Cup 2016, the whole world stood at its feet to applaud Virat Kohli’s 82 run knock against Australia. Well, de Kock’s 108 can easily be termed as similar in terms of stature and performance. The intensity of the match may not have matched India’s match, but the way he played can easily be placed alongside Kohli’s one.
Under pressure chasing a mammoth 192, de Kock paced his innings so perfectly that even Kohli might have bowed down. A mixture of some wonderful fours and running between the wicket was the highlight of his innings. With wickets falling from other hand, he didn’t lose his heart, and waited for the right moment to attack. His ability to read the game was beyond his age. ALSO READ: IPL 2016: Delhi Daredevils were confident of chasing 192 against Royal Challengers Bangalore, says Quinton de Kock
Well, you might be thinking, just after one good knock, why is he being over-hyped? But it is not this knock which has made him so special, its his performances over the past 3 years that has set him apart from the others. His record at such an age is something which even Kohli, AB de Villiers and Sachin Tendulkar would have been proud off.
De Kock has played 57 innings in ODI’s, which is quite decent for his age. But what has set him apart from the all the other talents is that he has already scored 10 centuries. Like Seriously? He became the quickest and the youngest batsman to score 10 centuries in ODI. And mind you, he beat Hashim Amla and Kohli respectively to those records. ALSO READ: Quinton de Kock’s ton takes DD to a 7-wicket win against RCB
His career didn’t really get off to a great start, but then, every youngster feels the pressure in his early days. But the special thing about him was how he kept his head high and proved all the hype around him. He scored three back to back hundreds against India in 2013, and became the youngest player to reach that feat. Not even Tendulkar, nor Amla, nor de Villiers or Kohli had scored 4 centuries before turning 21, but de Kock managed to do that as well, again becoming the youngest to achieve that feat.
But unlike other young players who play well for a period of time and rest on their laurels, de Kock kept on improving day by day. Just before the T20 fever began, he managed to score four centuries in 6 ODI innings, FOUR! That included 2 centuries in India and 2 at home. Perfectly capable of withstanding any sort of conditions is proved by the fact he has equal amount of centuries at home and away. His career average stands at 42.94 at an strike rate of 91.66!
In Test’s , he hasn’t got his fair share of opportunities, yet has achieved one century and two half-centuries in 8 matches. Considering he comes in No.6 or 7 for the Proteas in the Test’s, his average of 45.22 is more than good enough. If placed at the top of the order, what sort of level he can reach is beyond imagination.
In T20I’s, his record may not be outrageously good, but then, facts don’t tell the whole story. Ignoring his first 6 innings, he has been absolutely consistent. While not scoring any century, he has been very very good. Having 11 scores of 40+ in 29 innings can just tell the consistency he possess. In the recently concluded T20 World Cup where the likes of AB de Villiers, Amla, Faf du Plessis struggled for Proteas, de Kock showed maturity beyond age to score 153 runs 4 innings, going onto make the ‘Best XI’ of the tournament.
Many players like de Villiers, Tendulkar, Kohli, Ponting, Sangakkara, Lara were good by the age of 23, but none were as good as de Kock has been. His temperament, consistency and ability has overshadowed any other player at this age. No one can say about what’s gonna happen in future, but what is sure is that de Kock is currently the best young batsman in the world. Over that, if he keeps up the rate in which he is going, there will be no record that can be kept away from him, and probably the legend tag as well.
(R Narayan is a reporter with CricketCountry, and is an ardent cricket and football enthusiast (big Manchester United fan). Having followed Cricket since 2003, he likes high scoring matches as well as good fast bowling. His twitter handle is @RNarayan24nov)
