Dismiss Quinton de Kock at your peril.
That was the clear message from the veteran South African opener in Wednesday night’s Indian Premier League clash against Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati.
De Kock has endured a lean trot of late, starting at Australia’s Big Bash continuing through to the Betway SA20, where he averaged just 19.8 in a disappointing Durban’s Super Giants campaign.
But the flamboyant left-hander was back to his best for his new team, Kolkata Knight Riders, smashing an undefeated 97 off 61 balls this week.
It was enough to steer the Knight Riders, who are the defending champions, to a convincing eight-wicket victory.
“I love meeting new people, being in new environments. It is about finding your feet within the team,” De Kock said of his new team.
“Sometimes the team accepts you later, but here with KKR, they have accepted me already with open arms, so it feels good. They’re a great bunch of players.
“It’s always nice to start the tournament off with one or two wins... helps the mojo of the team.”
The 34-year-old has retired from both Test and ODI cricket, but has not played any international cricket for the Proteas since the ill-fated T20 World Cup final against India in June last year.
With Mumbai Indians’ Ryan Rickelton having seamlessly taken over De Kock’s position at the top of the order in the ODI line-up as a virtual like-for-like replacement, there is a feeling that the veteran may not be seen in a Proteas shirt again.
It also seems that De Kock’s form has dipped due to not having access to the intensity of international competition, but he feels that he’s had adequate preparation coming into this IPL.
“To be fair, haven’t felt any challenges yet,” he said. “Have had three months off, which felt nice. Had about a 10-day build-up to this season.
“This is only my second game here. Luckily we batted second, so I could watch the wicket, see how the ball was behaving, and I could adjust accordingly while batting.
“The IPL is known for big sixes and big scores, but that wasn’t the moment for me. It was just about winning it the way I know it.
“I was literally just standing still and trying to play the ball on merit.”
The surface in Guwahati favoured the spinners, with KKR’s spin duo of Varun Chakaravarthy (2/17) and Moeen Ali (2/23) combining excellently to restrict the Royals to a below-par 151/9.
“There are a lot of guys who were suited by this wicket. They bowled a lot of cutters. The ball was turning and stopping. It made it really difficult,” De Kock said.
“It was a working man’s wicket, if we get an opportunity at a better wicket, then surely that will be a chat (about scoring quicker).
“As an opener, you need to see the game through. If you a guy that smokes it all the time, then that’s great.
“But it was not the type of wicket for that kind of game. It was all about getting down and winning it.”
Brief Scorecard: Kolkata Knight Riders 153/2 in 17.3 overs (Quinton de Kock 97*, Angkrish Raghuvanshi 22*, Wanindu Hasaranga 1-34) beat Rajasthan Royals 151/9 in 20 overs (Dhruv Jurel 33, Yashasvi Jaiswal 29, Varun Chakaravarthy 2/17, Moeen Ali 2/23) by eight wickets.