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Ken Borland



Hungry De Kock frustrated by rain 0

Posted on September 02, 2022 by Ken

Quinton de Kock said after the third ODI between South Africa and England that it was “nice to get out in the middle and score some runs” in his trademark understated way, but given the hunger he showed to make it really count on Sunday, the fact that rain limited his fun to just 76 balls in 105 minutes would have frustrated the 29-year-old.

The left-hander made the most of his time at the crease though, overcoming a scratchy start against excellent English seam bowling to stroke a marvellous 92 not out before the match was washed out. It was his first major innings since his phenomenal 140 not out for the Lucknow Super Giants against the Kolkata Knight Riders on May 18 in his penultimate IPL game.

De Kock had only batted five more times since then, suffering a hand injury during the Proteas’ T20 series in India, so he was eager to make his mark at Headingley.

“It was obviously nice to get out there and score some runs, spend some time in the middle after time away from the game,” De Kock said after the series was shared 1-1 with world champions England.

“The pitch was providing a bit of swing and movement, so I just had to soak up the pressure at first, 50 overs is a long time, and make sure I remained strong in my positions.

“I wanted to make sure I had a strong defence and put away the bad balls, while keeping the ball on the ground for as long as possible. That was the game-plan.

“It was tricky facing three left-arm seamers swinging it around. But we thought that might happen in this series, so we did our prep to make sure we weren’t caught off-guard,” De Kock said.

The three-match series did provide at least one unexpected outcome, with star England all-rounder Ben Stokes’s decision to join the growing number of players who have retired from a format of the game catching many off-guard.

De Kock himself is strictly a white-ball player these days, and pleasingly is still clearly a top-class practitioner who makes batting look so easy on days like Sunday. Part of his secret is that he does not overcomplicate things and he said how much cricket players should be willing to play is purely a personal decision.

“It is starting to be tough for those players who play in all three formats, that is a lot of cricket and there are even more games now over the calendar year,” De Kock said.

“It’s an individual decision, if you feel you can do it then I’m happy for you, but others have taken it into their own hands. It’s a personal decision.

“If you’re still young then I think you should still play in all three formats. But as you get older, the body doesn’t co-operate as much. It’s just about managing things to prolong our careers.

“But there are still World Cups I want to play in and win, I still have a lot to play for. I always try to make an impact, that’s what we’re here to do, no matter how many formats you play,” De Kock said.

De Kock ready to blow England away with gale-force batting when rain arrives 0

Posted on September 02, 2022 by Ken

Quinton de Kock was ready to blow England away with a gale-force batting display when rain forced the abandonment of the third and decisive ODI at Headingley on Sunday, leaving the Proteas to share the series 1-1.

De Kock had produced an innings of enormous quality in reaching 92 not out off just 76 balls to steer South Africa to 159 for two in 27.4 overs when a second rain interruption proved terminal for a match that was intriguingly poised.

After a scratchy start, De Kock played some top-class strokes as he raced to a 39-ball half-century, showing a fine degree of judgement when he was not at his most fluent. Ever a threat through the off-side, the left-hander played a couple of sumptuous cover-drives, but also showed a superb touch behind the wicket, highlighted by a phenomenal boundary off Sam Curran, lifting a bouncer over the wicketkeeper.

The Proteas had surprisingly, given the weather forecast, elected to bat first and England’s opening bowlers, the new-ball pair of left-armers David Willey and Reece Topley, blunted South Africa’s desire for an aggressive start with some quality bowling.

Janneman Malan (11) fell in the sixth over, trying to drive Willey on the up but skewing a catch to backward point.

Rassie van der Dussen then came in and 75 was added for the second wicket as De Kock got into his stride. Van der Dussen had made 26 off 38 balls when he slog-swept leg-spinner Adil Rashid into the hands of deep square-leg, leaving the Proteas on 99 for two in the 17th over.

Aiden Markram was getting himself in when the first rain interruption came with South Africa on 119 for two in the 21st over.

The teams were stuck in the changerooms for 110 minutes and De Kock and Markram (24* off 34*) then added 40 more runs in the 41 balls they faced before the rain returned and washed out the match.

The three-match T20 series starts on Wednesday in Bristol.

Replacement Klaasen really grabs his opportunity 0

Posted on July 22, 2022 by Ken

Heinrich Klaasen, the replacement for the injured Quinton de Kock as wicketkeeper, really grabbed his opportunity as he blasted a tremendous 81 off 46 balls to lead South Africa to a four-wicket win with 10 balls to spare in the second T20 against India in Cuttack on Sunday.

Klaasen’s remarkable innings came after seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar had the Proteas batting reeling as they went in search of a moderate target of just 149.

South Africa won the first T20 as they chased down a record target of 212, but Sunday’s two-paced pitch at the Barabati Stadium really tested the batsmen on both sides, with inconsistent bounce and providing seam movement off the surface.

Bhuvneshwar undermined the Proteas chase from the start, using his remarkable skills to take 3/10 in his first three overs. Reeza Hendricks (4) and Rassie van der Dussen (1) were both bowled by deliveries that nipped back through the gate, while Dwaine Pretorius (4) was well-caught by Avesh Khan at deep backward square-leg off a knuckle ball.

Bhuvneshwar returned when just a handful of runs were needed and bowled Wayne Parnell for 1 to end with 4/13.

Captain Temba Bavuma scored a defiant 35 off 30 balls to begin the recovery with Klaasen, who came in do to De Kock’s finger injury suffered in the first game. The pair added 64 in seven overs before Bavuma was bowled by spinner Yuzvendra Chahal.

But Klaasen charged on, hitting seven fours and five sixes, with David Miller doing his usual efficient job at the death to finish the run-chase with 20 not out off 15 balls.

South Africa had won the toss and once again elected to chase, with Kagiso Rabada yet again delivering up front as he dismissed Ruturaj Gaikwad (1) in the first over and went on to bowl his four overs for an exceptionally economical 15 runs.

Ishan Kishan (34) and Shreyas Iyer (40) added 45 for the second wicket in six overs, before fast bowler Anrich Nortje had Kishan out hooking a bouncer and Pretorius surprised Shreyas with a delivery that stood up outside off stump and induced a catch behind.

Nortje and Pretorius were the dearest of the Proteas bowlers, however, conceding 36 and 40 runs respectively, and it was left-armer Parnell who backed up Rabada most effectively, bowling the dangerous Hardik Pandya for nine and conceding just 23 runs in his four overs.

Stalwart Dinesh Karthik hit 30 not out off 21 balls at the death to lift India to 148/6, which seemed a tricky target before Klaasen’s phenomenal innings.

Verreynne does not resemble De Kock, but he proved he belongs at highest level 0

Posted on April 04, 2022 by Ken

Kyle Verreynne is not going to resemble Quinton de Kock nor necessarily fit the perception of what some people believe a Test batsman should look like, but the 24-year-old proved in no uncertain fashion that he belongs at the highest level as his magnificent maiden Proteas century put South Africa in command of the second Test against New Zealand in Christchurch on Monday.

Verreynne has had a tough time at Test level, scoring just 112 runs in his first eight innings, but he more than doubled that with his brilliant 136 not out in the second innings at Hagley Oval. Going back to the batsman he was before his elevation to Test level provided the breakthrough for the Western Province wicketkeeper/batsman.

“It’s been challenging mentally and Test cricket is the toughest format,” Verreynne said. “My first three series have been on challenging pitches, the wickets for the India series were the toughest I’ve ever batted on and the first Test here was difficult too.

“So you have a lot of doubts and you read what people write about your technique and it’s a challenge. It’s important to keep your self-belief and back your preparation and what you have done in the past.

“In the build-up to this game I did quite a lot of work on my technique and I felt in a really good space, it was just about getting mentally right. I’ve gone back to what I was doing for the last couple of years.

“Footwork has never been a strong point of mine, for me it’s more about my contact points and playing the ball late. Fortunately it worked out and hopefully I’m through that tough phase in my career now,” Verreynne said.

Verreynne praised Kagiso Rabada for his ferocious innings of 47 off 34 balls after lunch on the fourth day that saw the rampant duo hammer 69 runs in eight overs. Not only did their efforts allow South Africa to declare at tea with a lead of 425, but the momentum was carried through into the field, Rabada roaring in with the ball and dismissing both New Zealand openers in his first two overs.

“The third evening was a tricky period for myself and Wiaan Mulder, the stage of the game was such that we just had to get through, and the first 30 minutes this morning were the same, and then we could show more intent.

“KG said he felt pretty good and he would stick around for me to get my hundred. But then it looked like he just couldn’t miss the ball and his innings was a big factor in the energy we took into our bowling,” Verreynne said.

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