Quinton de Kock shocked the cricket fraternity when he recently announced his retirement from Test cricket for South Africa, citing the need to spend more time with his family.
De Kock’s wife, Sasha, recently gave birth to the couple’s first child. The left handed batsman was set to leave the Proteas’s ‘bio bubble’ to be by his wife’s side and thus miss the remainder of the recent series with India.
De Kock has played 54 Tests since making his debut in 2012. He made his debut against Australia at St George’s Park and became a key member of the Proteas team, helping them to major series victories in Australia 2016 and New Zealand in 2017.
Mark Boucher and his selectors will be looking for a worthy replacement for De Kock, which means a keeper who can occupy a position in the top-six batting order, which can also give the team a chance to play a bowling all-rounder.
There has been immense speculation pertaining the replacement for De Kock. However, the selectors will definitely look at long-term solutions with many players raising their hands in the local domestic 4 Day Series.
Here’s looking at 4 players who can replace De Kock as wicket-keeper-batsmen in the South African cricket team.
Kyle Verreynne
Kyle Verreynne hails from Cape Town a former Wynberg Boys High pupil, he currently plays for the Cape Cobras and his star has been rising over the last 12-18 months.
Verreynne has already played two Tests for South Africa as he was the stand in keeper for De Kock during the West Indies series in June 2021.
Despite not doing well in that series with the bat as he only managed to score 39 runs in three innings, his first class performances speak volumes as he has been one of the most consistent and reliable keeper batsman in the South African domestic circuit.
Verreynne is regarded as a quick and responsive wicket-keeper and is definitely the on in the fore-front to replace De Kock.
First class batting average: 51.95
Highest score: 216*
- Ryan Rickelton
Ryan Rickleton a former St.Stithians Collage pupil currently ply’s his trade with the Lions situated at the Wanderers Stadium. Rickleton is known for one of the most dangerous strikers of the ball with an excellent conversion rate.
He averages under 50 in first class cricket with nine hundreds and nine fifties from just 56 innings to his name. The talented left handed batsman has made hundreds in two of his three first class innings this season, averaging 93.66.
First class batting average: 49.86
Highest score: 202*
- Sinethemba Qeshile
Sinethemba Qeshile is an up and coming batsman who has a knack for lighting up matches. The East London born, right handed batsman made his Warriors franchise debut versus the Dolphins on the 22nd of March in 2018 and scored 52*. He has played for Border Under -19s and the South Africa Under-19s team.
Dubbed by many as a future option in all formats, Qeshile played two Twenty20 Internationals against Sri Lanka in 2019.
He was the keeper for SA ‘A’ in the recent series against India ‘A’, which highlights that he is certainly in the future plans and thoughts of the selectors going forward.
First class batting average: 36.00
Highest score: 124 not out
- Wandile Makwetu
Wandile Makwetu (born 7 January 1999) is a South African cricketer and former pupil at St.Stithians College. He made his first-class debut for Northerns Districts in the 2017–18 Sunfoil 3-Day Cup on 1 March 2018.
The former SA Under-19 international has plenty of promise but would need to do a lot of work and u his batting numbers to break into the test team.
First class batting average: 24.77
Highest score: 101
