It probably wouldn’t surprise too many people that Proteas wicketkeeper batsman Quinton de Kock is the proud owner of a red Ford Mustang.
In a way his choice of vehicle is very much in tune with the way in which he goes about his cricket. Bold, brash and in your face. Some might even say he’s obdurate, particularly when the runs dry up as they did in the World Cup last year.
“No licence, that’s just how I play. I haven’t been given it, but…. You can’t stop someone with how they play,” he said with a chuckle this week.
But when he gets going he can be brutal and the left-hander is hoping to devastate England’s bowling attack during the One Day International series which begins in Bloemfontein on Wednesday.
“I don’t know what happened. It was just a lack of form I guess. It’s not uncommon for players to get it. Unfortunately I just got it at the wrong time during the World Cup and through Bangladesh. That’s who life goes. You wake up and the sun’s still going to rise the next day,” De Kock, fresh off a maiden Test ton last week said.
But the three figure total in Centurion, in a winning cause, could signal that the 23-year-old is in the right frame of mind heading into the limited overs stuff.
“Hasn’t quite soaked in,” he said of his achievement. “Ive been scoring a couple of runs now before so confidence is high at the moment,” De Kock, who averaged 63.6 during the limited overs series against India with two tons on that portion of the tour, added
“I usually try and keep a strong mind about it. The way I play i don’t get down on myself. If I don’t score runs I’ve got the next game. Energy levels are up and hopefully we can give the English a klap.”
He’s also not too worried about making the switch from batting lower down the order in Test cricket to shooting up and opening in the white ball format.
“It’s not much of a change, I face the new ball in a Test anyways. Not much difference just a different colour ball and clothing so just need to get used to that again,” he said.
If he sees the white ball the way he did in India, and takes the confidence that comes with a Test hundred it could mean an entertaining time because De Kock has a tendency to shift gears quite quickly.
