Quinton de Kock reveals his reason for reversing his international retirement decision

Quinton de Kock, a legendary batter from South Africa, came out of retirement to play limited-overs cricket for his country. He stated that during his time away from international cricket, he has had a desire to win games for the national team.

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Quinton de Kock seems to have found his competitive edge again, coming back stronger, more focused, and more determined to win games for South Africa. In the second Twenty20 International against India, his brilliant 90 off just 46 balls served as a stark reminder of his class and rekindled ambition to play at the greatest level.

Quinton de Kock's statement, "You never know what you have until you've lost it," sums up the South African opener's motivation for returning to international cricket. De Kock discussed his retirement U-turn during the post-match news conference following the Proteas' 51-run victory over India.

“Prior to my retirement, I was losing my hunger to win games, specifically for the Proteas…. and that time away just brought back my hunger,” he said at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium here on Thursday.

“I was quite exhausted from international cricket. So, my break was much needed. Now, when I came back, I’ve got a lot of energy that I can put back towards the team.”

“I want to play for as long as I can now, where I don’t think I could have had that mindset if I (had) carried on playing. I would have probably finished my career earlier… but now, I can prolong my career. I feel fitter than ever, and I’m not mentally exhausted.”

Both after his international comeback in the limited-over matches and when asked about his return to Test cricket, Quinton de Kock firmly declined. He said the purpose of the hiatus was to rekindle his passion for the game.

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After the 2023 World Cup and the 2024 T20 World Cup, respectively, the 32-year-old South African cricket player declared his retirement from ODIs and T20Is. However, he has since changed his mind and will return before the 2026 T20 World Cup.

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