Quinton de Kock’s refusal to take a knee prior to the T20 World Cup match against West Indies was down to his belief that it’s a “token gesture”, according to a South African cricket writer.
De Kock withdrew from the South African team after the squad was directed to take a knee by the game’s governing body in that country.
READ MORE: South Africa superstar withdraws from World Cup game after directive to ‘take a knee’
READ MORE: NFL coach’s scathing response to ‘joke’ question
READ MORE: Melbourne Cup order of entry: How it works, and who will make the final field
It came after some players stood with their hands behind their back prior to South Africa’s match against Australia on Saturday, while others knelt with a fist in the air, and a third group stood with a raised fist.
Cricket South Africa then ordered all players to take a knee, leading to de Kock making himself unavailable for the match against the West Indies.
“The board’s view was that while diversity can and should find expression in many facets of daily lives, this did not apply when it came to taking a stand against racism,” a statement said.
Speaking to SEN Radio, Johannesburg journalist Lungani Zama pointed out that the decision was only communicated to the players in the hours before the match.
“‘Quinny’ just took umbrage at the fact there was an instruction given with no choice for players,” he said.
“The timing could have been a lot better, given the amount of time South Africa have had to take a definitive, collective stance on it and they’ve almost made up the rule in the middle of a tournament ahead of a must-win game.
“The previous board had said to them that every player is allowed to express themselves in whichever way they deem fit.”
Zama explained that de Kock’s actions away from the game showed that he takes the issue of equality seriously.
“I’ll qualify it by saying that Quinton de Kock, if you’re asking me if he’s racist or against Black Lives Matter, I’ll unequivocally say no because I know him personally,” he said.
“I know the work that he’s done to improve the lives and experiences of black players and black people around him for years and years, long before Black Lives Matter was a trend on social media.”
According to Zama, the 28-year-old is upset at the imposition of a blanket rule by Cricket South Africa, feeling that it takes away the importance of any gesture.
“I think because their constitutional rights were taken away from them, it was an instruction from the boss when it hadn’t been previously discussed,” he noted.
“Added to that, from my conversations with him before, he sees it as a token gesture which has been watered down to almost mean nothing. It’s something that you have to do to be seen to be doing the right thing.
“His preference is to actually do the right thing, which he does in the way that he lives, the way that he interacts, and the way that he treats people of all races.
“It’s the token gesture for him that’s the issue.
“Unfortunately it’s the perfect storm between some pretty shoddy administration in South African cricket and mixed messaging in terms of what players can and cannot do.”
That’s a view shared by former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist, who backed de Kock’s right to make his own informed choice.
“I completely agree that it’s a much more worthwhile, meaningful journey if the individual is able to learn what they can and settle on a comfortable decision for themselves, rather than being forced, and ramrodded down a particular policy that has clearly been made on the run,” Gilchrist said on SEN.
The former boss of the the Australian Cricket Board (now Cricket Australia), Malcolm Speed, who went on to run the International Cricket Council, also told SEN that Cricket South Africa’s decision to impose a blanket rule was a bridge too far.
“It’s imposing on players an obligation to support a moral issue, and that takes it an extra step from where we’ve been in the past,” he said.
“Cricket boards should not be allowed to go that far and direct players on ethical and moral issues.
“Sexism, homophobia, we could make a list of other issues, if we start telling players that this is the view you must take on this issue, that’s a step too far in my view.”
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!