South African cricket star Quinton de Kock on Thursday apologized for refusing to take a knee in a Twenty20 World Cup match that took the cricket world by storm.
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A look at the sequence of events surrounding the important decision and what happened after it.
Bavuma in the toss
Captain Temba Bavuma said that Quinton de Kock had decided to pull out of Tuesday’s match against West Indies due to personal reasons.
De Kock’s decision comes after Cricket South Africa (CSA) ordered players to kneel in support of anti-racism.
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Reeza Hendrix took over the wicketkeeping duties with Heinrich Klaasen in the team in her place.
Cricket South Africa statement
The country’s cricket board soon sent a statement saying they “did not pay attention to the personal decision of South African wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock” ahead of Tuesday’s match.
“The board will await another report from the team management before deciding on the next course of action. All players are expected to follow this instruction (to take a knee) for the remainder of the World Cup.”
South Africa won their match against West Indies by eight wickets.
Bavuma’s ‘toughest’ day
Bavuma, the first black African captain of the national cricket team, said de Kock’s decision was a “surprise” for the team.
Bavuma revealed that the board’s instruction came on the morning of the match and that he was apprised of de Kock’s decision on the team bus on the way to the stadium.
He said that August was the toughest day of his captaincy since de Kock as ODI captain.
Cricket world divided
The former cricketers-turned-pundit came with his own take on De Kock’s saga, which many believed was more than a knee-jerk.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan said: “Certainly it is up to the individual to decide whether he wants to join a movement or not,” and the board should not bar that person from playing cricket.
Read also: England players kneel after ICC refuses permission to wear special T-shirts
Former West Indies captain Darren Sammy said: “Sometimes I don’t understand why it is so difficult to support this movement if you understand what it means.”
Apologies
De Kock finally came out with an apology for settling matters on Thursday morning and informed everyone that he would be “happy” to kneel down with his teammates.
De Kock said he was “deeply sorry for all the hurt, confusion and anger” that he has caused.
The batsman explained that he comes from a mixed-caste family in which his half-sisters have the complexion and his step-mother is black. The board welcomed his decision and acknowledged that the “timing” of his kneeling instruction could have been better as it upset many players.
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