South African batsman Quinton de Kock (AP/PTI) Quinton de Kock could hardly have timed his statement better. With the T20 World Cup looming, the South African opener delivered a thunderous reminder of his destructive potential by breaking his country’s all-time record for T20 runs to surpass Faf du Plessis with a breathtaking innings in Centurion. De Kock achieved the landmark during the second T20I against the West Indies on Thursday, January 29, creating a scintillating 43-ball century at the SuperSport Park. The knock not only sealed a dominant seven-wicket win but also underlined his form heading into the global tournament. He now sits atop South Africa’s T20 run charts with 12,113 runs from 430 matches at an average of 31.46 at a strike rate of 139.10.
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Longevity and consistency define de Kock’s record in the shortest format. His tally of eight hundred and 81 fifties reflects years of sustained excellence. Among South Africans, only David Miller’s 35-year-old hundred against Bangladesh in 2017 and Dewald Brevis’ 41-ball hundred against Australia last year were faster than de Kock’s ton against the West Indies. The shift rewrote several records in the record books. De Kock has now scored centuries in South Africa’s first two successful 200-plus chases in T20Is, including the only successful 250-plus chase in the history of the format. He moved into joint second for most sixes in a T20I innings by a South African, equaling Reez Hendricks with 10, with Richard Levi’s 13 from 2012 still the benchmark. He also became only the third South African, after David Miller and Rilee Rossouw, to register multiple T20I centuries. Other milestones followed. De Kock holds the record for most hundreds by a designated wicketkeeper in men’s T20s, with eight to his credit. He is also the first South African and only the second player overall, after Colin Munro, to score two T20I centuries at the same venue. In addition, he has now featured in four separate 150-plus partnerships for South Africa in the format. His 115 off 49 balls, studded with 10 sixes and six fours, guided South Africa to a stunning chase of 222 in just 17.3 overs. The win gave the home team an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-game series with one game to play.
