South Africa vs West Indies: Quinton de Kock pulls out of T20 World Cup match after CSA tells players to take knee in support of BLM movement

South Africa won the toss and elected to bowl first against West Indies in a Group 1 match of the Super 12 stage in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup on Tuesday.

Shockingly, star South African batter Quinton de Kock made himself unavailable for the match citing “personal reasons”. Reeza Hendricks has been included in the playing XI, informed Proteas skipper Temba Bavuma after the toss.

Notably, De Kock, 28, decided to opt out of the match just hours after Cricket South Africa ordered all players to make the gesture against racism.

CSA said in a statement that it was “imperative for the team to be seen taking a united and consistent stand against racism, especially given South Africa’s history.”

In the Proteas’ first match against Australia, de Kock was the only player to not either take a knee, raise a fist or stand to attention.

CSA was worried that the different postures may create an “unintended perception of disparity or lack of support for” the BLM movement, and therefore has directed players to kneel.

De Kock then pulled out of Tuesday’s match against the West Indies due to “personal reasons”.

Also, before the start of the match, Indian cricketer Dinesh Karthik tweeted, “Quinton de Kock not playing because of his stand on BLM [Black Lives Matter] movement,” with an image of de Kock refusing to take the knee.

Quinton de Kock not playing because of his stand on BLM movement #BlackLivesMatter #SAvsWI #worldT20 pic.twitter.com/LqC76QKCL3

— DK (@DineshKarthik) October 26, 2021

Moreover, at the start of the match, commentators Daren Sammy and Pommie Mbangwa speculated de Kock’s decision to sit out over his refusal to take the knee.

Mbangwa said, “Lack of support for the initiative essentially means lack of support for people of colour within the team, in South Africa and in the world as a whole. Excuse me if I sound political, but I can’t shed my skin.”