By Thys Khiba
Dubai – The national cricket team captain Temba Bavuma has shared with the public that Quinton de Kock’s decision to withdraw from the crucial ICC T2O World Cup match against the West Indies was only made on the bus enroute from Abu Dhabi to the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
“The instruction from the board came in the morning, this morning. A meeting was convened between a couple of members, and that’s where that message was passed on to us. We then before, I guess, getting on the bus to travel to Dubai, that message was passed on to the players,” Bavuma said.
“I think the trip was about an hour and a half to two hours. In that trip I guess that’s where Quinton made his decision. We found out – I found out as the captain – when we got to the changing room.”
This is after the wicketkeeper-batsman, a former national captain, de Kock had made himself unavailable due to “personal reasons” as the Cricket South Africa (CSA) has directed all Proteas players to take a knee before all T20 World Cup matches.
Concerns have been raised over different postures taken by the team before matches, as critics say this creates the sense there is a lack of interest in the Black Lives Matter movement.
De Kock refused to take a knee in South Africa’s Test series in the West Indies earlier this year.
“Concerns were raised that the different postures taken by team members in support of the BLM initiative created an unintended perception of disparity or lack of support for the initiative.After considering all relevant issues, including the position of the players, the Board felt that it was imperative for the team to be seen taking a united and consistent stand against racism, especially given SA’s history,” said a CSA statement.
As the captain of the team, Bavuma admitted these dramatic events that unfolded had an emotional effect on the team, although they showed great character to complete an eight-wicket victory over the Windies.
“When the news hit us it did kind of take us back as a team. A guy like Quinnie, he obviously plays an integral role within the team, not just with the bat but as a senior player but with that, (Heinrich) Klaasen coming in there was an opportunity for him,” Bavuma said post-match.
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