Auckland - There was no magic potion or a tweak of his technique, but there was a sublime catch - that had a bit of good fortune about it - that did wonders for Quinton de Kock’s self-belief.
Until he threw himself two metres to his left chasing an edge offered by Sri Lanka’s Kusal Perera, going across Hashim Amla at first slip, in the second over of Wednesday’s quarter-final in Sydney, De Kock’s World Cup was turning out to be memorable for all the wrong reasons.
Having watched the ball pop up out of his left glove he reflexively went to reach for it, pouching it at the second attempt, to give South Africa the early lift they needed, after they had lost out on the opportunity to bat first at the toss.
For De Kock’s confidence, it was a huge moment. Russell Domingo, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Amla… every one of his teammates had been backing him from one failed innings to the next. If anything it seemed to embarrass him for in Wellington against the UAE last week, De Kock played a poor innings that exemplified the fragility of his confidence throughout the pool stages.
De Kock’s average of the tournament ahead of Wednesday’s match at the SCG was just 8.83, with that top score of 26 against the UAE.
The South African squad never wavered in its support. After the win against the Sri Lankans De Villiers heaped praise on the coaching staff and the selectors for sticking by De Kock, but his absolute refusal to take up the wicket-keeping gloves did as much to force the selectors’ hand as anything.
If the captain didn’t want to take up the gloves, there’s no way Domingo and Hussein Manack would have been able to force him otherwise. In fact, if anything, Domingo was very much on his skipper’s side and the way in which De Villiers marshalled his bowlers got his fielding placing just right - not just in terms positioning but also the personnel in the positions, underscored his statement made last week, that he is a better captain without worrying about the wicket-keeping duties.
De Kock never shirked his work at training. He remained diligent even if at times it looked like he was trying too hard. Even before Wednesday’s match, he was around the back of the dressing-room at the SCG taking throw-downs from Charl Langeveldt before the team had started their warm-ups on the field.
Then came that catch. A while later another - to assist JP Duminy with his hat-trick - and then of course came that fine half-century. De Kock was not so much a player transformed as one who looked brand new.
It’s as if the previous six matches of the World Cup had not taken place and an entirely new tournament had started. In many respects that is the case with the knockout phase.
De Kock had joked with Kevin Pietersen during the warm-up that he was saving all his runs for the matches that matter, and then produced a serious performance to wash away all the concerns about his previous lack of results.
He played two delectable square-drives off Nuwan Kulasekara, to get himself into gear, and but for one occasion when he inside edged the “mystery spinner” Tharindu Kaushal on to his pad with the ball looping too close to short-leg, he looked in complete control. Faf du Plessis merely nudged the ball around, De Kock caressed it, they made it look easy, although as he mentioned afterward that wasn’t the case. “We knew it was going to be hard even though it was just 130. It may have looked like I was playing easily, but trust me, it was anything but easy,” said De Kock.
He finished unbeaten on 78, off 57 balls having struck 12 fours, and all his troubles are seemingly behind him. Of course, having suffered through such a difficult trot during the group phase, he will be keen to continue this good form.
“I’m just glad I have finally contributed at this World Cup and for the team,” De Kock smiled.
On Wednesday night, the support from his teammates wasn’t of the sympathetic variety that has been the case in the last four weeks. They were just genuinely happy for him, with Rilee Rossouw crushing him with a big bear hug and exclaiming: “You played like a machine out there boy!”
Weekend Argus