Quinton de Kock’s name has been in the spotlight for quite some time now following his refusal to ‘take the knee’. This comes after team members were requested to ‘take the knee’ in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and to unite against racism.
De Kock withdrew from the match against West Indies on Tuesday, while the Cricket SA (CSA) board acknowledged his decision and said that they “will await a further report from team management before deciding on the next steps”.
Proteas captain, Temba Bavuma responded to De Kock’s decision, saying that as a team, they were “obviously surprised and taken aback by the news.”
“Quinton is an adult, he is a man in his own shoes and we respect his decision and his convictions,” Bavuma expressed.
De Kock then issued a statement where he expressed that:
“I never wanted to make this a Quinton issue. I understand the importance of standing against racism, and I also understand the responsibility of us as players to set an example.
“For those who don’t know, I come from a mixed race family. My half-sisters are Coloured and my step mom is Black. For me, Black lives have mattered since I was born. Not just because there was an international movement.
“I felt like my rights were taken away when I was told what we had to do in the way that we were told.
“I didn’t understand why I had to prove it with a gesture when I live and learn and love people from all walks of life every day. When you are told what to do, with no discussion, I felt like it takes away the meaning. If I was racist, I could have easily taken the knee and lied, which is wrong and doesn’t build a better society.
“I am not a racist. In my heart of hearts I know that.”
Since then, the South African wicketkeeper-batsman has returned to the field and took the knee along with his South African teammates ahead of their Twenty20 World Cup clash against Sri Lanka on Saturday.
And even though De Kock previously mentioned in his statement that “If me taking a knee helps to educate others, and makes the lives of others better, I am more than happy to do so,” social media is a bit divided.
@DaveNtombela said “Didn’t look too happy, you can see he’s only doing it to save his career.” On the other hand,@jaysingh126 said “[You’re] not meant to look happy when taking the knee. If he was smiling or smirking than everyone would say it’s disrespectful.”
Here are some of the other responses:
@NeobinKekana – “White peoples must take it easy here… this hurts them to the core.”
@RowerJacques – “Its interesting that the people who were once forced to do something against their convictions are now the ones supporting it.”
Also read:
Quinton de Kock breaks his silence following decision not to ‘take the knee’
Picture: Twitter / @SACricketmag