South Africa’s wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock has been making headlines ever since he refused to ‘take the knee’ in a display of solidarity for the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement. At the toss of South Africa’s match against West Indies on October 26, CSA’s captain Temba Bavuma had made one change to the usual playing XI.
The 28-year-old’s decision has been scrutinised by a number of people on social media, including former Pakistan cricket team captain Salman Butt.
In a video uploaded on his YouTube channel, Butt says, “What he did was really strange. Everyone is taking part in the Black Lives Matter (BLM) moment, which basically says that all humans are equal and no one should consider themselves superior on the basis of race or color,”
“It was decided for everyone (by Cricket South Africa) that players should take a knee. His decision will not unite people but will only create a further divide. I really don’t know why he did this,”
The former cricketer added, “He (de Kock) lives in a country where people from both races are in abundance. This is certainly not the South Africa of Nelson Mandela. When things in South Africa improved and they merged themselves back with the rest of the world, he united people,”
Quinton de Kock was replaced by Reeza Hendricks after the former’s decision to make himself unavailable for selection for the fixture against West Indies. CSA’s captain cited ‘personal reasons’ behind the left-handed opener’s unavailability during the toss of the ICC T20 World Cup’s eighteenth fixture.
However, it was later revealed that Quinton’s decision came after CSA’s mandate for all players of the team to take the knee before the beginning of their match. His refusal to take the knee comes from his ‘own personal belief’.
It remains to be seen what actions Cricket South Africa will take against de Kock but their message is clear, all the team members will have to take a united stand against racism.
Many speculate that Quinton de Kock will never be seen wearing South African colours on the field again.
