MATCH STORY
Follow UsQuinton de Kock registered the fourth-highest individual powerplay score in the history of the T20 World Cup on June 21 (Friday) in St Lucia. In South Africa’s second Super8 encounter of the 2024 T20 World Cup against England, the left-handed opener smashed 49* off 20 deliveries in the first six overs.
South Africa’s top order struggled heavily in the group stage, playing three games in New York and one in St Vincent. The surfaces there were extremely difficult for batting and not a single South African batter could operate at a strike rate of more than 100. However, things have turned around drastically in the Super 8s.
And the sole reason for that turnaround has been de Kock. The wicketkeeper-batter slammed 74 off 40 against the USA at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua, with 41 of those coming in the powerplay off 18 balls. That was the most runs scored by a batter in the first six overs of an innings in this World Cup but QdK went a couple of steps ahead against England.
The surface at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in St Lucia has been best for batting in the ongoing edition and de Kock made the most of it. The carnage started in the second over when de Kock took down Moeen Ali. Prior to this game, de Kock was averaging just 11.6 against the offspinner and had been dismissed by him six times in T20s.
But de Kock is not someone who lives in the past. The left-hander charged down the track twice and collected 4 and 6 of the last two deliveries on the second over. He then went after Jofra Archer, smoking him for 6, 6, and 4 on three consecutive deliveries. De Kock raced to 31 off 12 deliveries - his fourth quickest start in T20Is.
Reece Topley (0/18 in three overs in the powerplay) managed to keep de Kock quiet and looking at that, the England skipper brought another left-arm seamer into the attack. Sam Curran was asked to bowl the final over of the powerplay, but the pacer made the mistake of going short and de Kock was quick to dispatch it for a maximum over deep square leg.
De Kock ended the powerplay one short of his half-century and missed out on an opportunity to become the fourth batter to hit a fifty in the powerplay of a T20 World Cup game. He did complete his fifty in the next over, though, off 22 deliveries - the joint quickest in this edition alongside Aaron James (vs Canada in Dallas).
He was eventually dismissed in the 12th over but the damage was already done. De Kock hit 65 off 38 deliveries - the fourth-highest score by a South African opener in the history of the T20 World Cup. De Kock, who scored 48 runs in the group stage at an average of 12 and a strike rate of 98, has now smacked 139 runs in the last two games at a strike rate of close to 180.
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