Who said what: Top 5 expert reactions to Quinton de Kock's 174 vs Bangladesh in 2023 World Cup ft. Aakash Chopra
100, 109, 20, 4, and 174 - South Africa's Quinton de Kock is making sure that his last dance in ODI cricket is a memorable one. Aged only 30, the wicketkeeper-batter has decided to bid goodbye to ODI cricket after the ongoing World Cup.
De Kock registered his third ton of the tournament against Bangladesh on Tuesday. He hardly made any mistakes during his 140-ball 174-run knock, which was laced with 15 boundaries and seven sixes.
His mammoth knock helped South Africa post 382/5 in their 50 overs. It was enough to put the Bangla Tigers under pressure at the halfway mark. Despite a valiant century from Mahmudullah, Bangladesh could only muster 233, losing the match by 149 runs.
With that gigantic knock, Quinton de Kock leapfrogged India's Virat Kohli to be the current highest run-scorer in the World Cup. The left-handed batter has accumulated 407 runs in five innings at an average of 81.40 and a strike rate of almost 115.
Meanwhile, de Kock has left everyone awestruck, including experts and fans. On that note, let's take a look at the top five expert reactions to his latest sublime knock.
#1 "You just want to let him fly" - Aiden Markram on Quinton de Kock
South Africa's stop-gap captain Aiden Markram reserved high praise for wicketkeeper-batter Quinton de Kock, saying that he is a 'free-spirited guy' who should be allowed to fly.
“We all know Quinton to be the free-spirited guy that he is, but he actually has a fantastic cricket brain on him,” Markram told reporters in the post-match interaction.
"And then you never want to clip his wings, really. You just want to let him fly. He structures it the exact way he feels (the) need, and we back that completely as a unit,” he added.
#2 "He batted at the speed of a bullet train" - Irfan Pathan
Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan praised the Proteas opener for pacing his innings to perfection, which helped the team post a daunting total.
Pathan told Star Sports about de Kock's swashbuckling knock:
"The knock Quinton de Kock played today, he looked extremely quiet at the start. He played slightly cautiously but today was also the first time he hit a six in the powerplay since March 2022."
"He took his time to get set and once he got set, he did an amazing job," he added. "He scored his century at a strike rate of less than 100 but he batted at the speed of a bullet train for his last 74 runs. He is an extremely dangerous batter who knows this pitch very well and likes the bounce."
#3 "Abhi na jao chhod kar ki dil abhi bhara nahin" - Aakash Chopra
Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra credited Quinton de Kock for taking the game away from Bangladesh with a sublime knock despite South Africa losing two early wickets.
Chopra also used a line from a popular Hindi song to ask de Kock not to retire from ODI cricket after the World Cup.
"Bangladesh made a good start, they picked two wickets in the powerplay," Chopra said in a video uploaded on his YouTube channel.
"It seemed like they would change the game but how will they do that because Quinton de Kock has decided and come that it is his last World Cup and every time it should be said - 'Abhi na jao chhod kar ki dil abhi bhara nahin' (Please don't leave now, it seems to early)," he added.
The former Indian opener further added that fans should ask the celebrated Proteas cricketer the reason behind leaving ODI cricket prematurely.
#4 "For Quinton, it was home away from home" - Shane Bond
Former New Zealand fast bowler Shane Bond spoke highly of Quinton de Kock after he notched his third century of the tournament. The Kiwi also reckoned that de Kock retiring at the age of only 30 is extremely sad.
"In 50-over cricket, on a flat wicket, on a good surface, you've got more time than what you think. It only takes a couple of big overs from the run rate to jump from 5.5 to 6.5. For Quinton, it was home away from home He understands the conditions; he understands the bowling attack he was facing," Bond told ESPNCricinfo.
"Bangladesh was short on quick bowlers," he continued. "Conversations about the bowlers they were planning to target took place in the middle. It was a perfectly timed innings. He is one of the greats of One Day cricket and sad that he is 30 years old and is going to retire at his prime."
#5 "Scoring three hundreds in five innings is a pretty special effort" - JP Duminy
South Africa's batting coach JP Duminy, who has seen de Kock grow as a cricketer, asserted that scoring three centuries in five games at the grand stage is a "pretty special effort."
Addressing reporters after South Africa's fourth win of the World Cup, Duminy said:
“It’s easy to score a hundred and then sort of take a back seat, but every single day that he comes to training and the games that he has played so far, you know, scoring three hundreds in five innings is a pretty special effort."
"Knowing the character that he is, he is certainly not going to rest on that," he added. "He has got great ambitions to go all the way and be a real strong performer for the team.”
Can Quinton de Kock guide South Africa to their first-ever World Cup title? Let us know in the comment section.