Follow UsTwo years ago, Quinton de Kock left the whole world wondering ‘WHY?’ after he retired from One Day Internationals at the very peak of his career, at a time when he had hammered 594 runs and four tons in the 2023 ODI World Cup. Given he was just 30, too, the retirement was a puzzling one, especially considering ODI cricket was the left-hander’s best format.
But de Kock is back in ODI cricket again after reversing retirement, and he’s still as good as he was two years back. After marking his comeback with a 63 in the first ODI against Pakistan, the 32-year-old, on November 6 (Thursday), notched up his 22nd ODI ton to signal he is well and truly back. De Kock smashed 123* as the Proteas levelled the series with a thumping 8-wicket win.
The century means that there are now only two South African men who have scored more ODI tons than de Kock - AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla.
Most ODI tons by a South African batter
27 - Hashim Amla
25 - AB de Villiers
22 - Quinton de Kock
De Kock needs just one more ton to equal Kumar Sangakkara for the most ODI tons by a wicketkeeper, and he looks slated to get there in less than half the innings that the Sri Lankan took.
Most ODI centuries by a wicketkeeper batter
Kumar Sangakkara - 23 in 340 innings
Quinton de Kock - 22 in 156 innings
The explosive knock in the second ODI saw de Kock hammer 8 fours and 7 sixes. It is a rare sight, as the 7 sixes hit by de Kock yesterday are the joint second-most he’s hit in an ODI innings.
The third ODI will be played on November 8 (Saturday), and de Kock will be aiming to bat the Proteas to a series win.