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T20 World Cup De Kock Makes Himself Unavailable After Sa Makes Anti Racism Gesture Compulsory

T20 World Cup | de Kock makes himself unavailable after SA makes anti-racism gesture compulsory

Interesting sets of events unfolded after the toss in South Africa vs West Indies game in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. South Africa captain Temba Bavuma after winning the toss, decided to field first and had a surprise announcement that opener and dashing batter Quinton de Kock had decided to make himself unavailable for the match due to personal reasons.

At that time it was thought that the personal reasons were not known but later on it came to light that de Kock might have decided not to play after Cricket South Africa made it mandatory for players and support staff to take the knee in support of the anti-racism movement.

The statement by CSA came on Monday night, just a day ahead of today’s game.

The CSA has addressed the issue and in a statement said that it understands that it was a personal decision of de Kock, but since the board had already made itself clear that SA would be taking a united stand against racism. The board said that it would now take feedback from the team management and decide on the future course of events.

Commentators Pommie Mbangwa and Daren Sammy on-air made allegations that de Kock decide not to take the knee and hence opted out of the game.

During the commentary, Mbangwa said, “Lack of support for the initiative essentially means lack of support for people of colour within the team, in SA and in the world as a whole. Excuse me if I sound Political, but I can't shed my skin."

While Sammy on the other hand said, “As my mother always said, you've got to stand for something, or you'll fall for anything. Sometimes I don't understand: why is it so difficult to support this movement, if you understand what it stands for?”

CSA Board Chairperson, Lawson Naidoo in a press release said, “Race should not be manipulated to amplify our weaknesses. Diversity can and should find expression in many facets of our daily lives, but not when it comes to taking a stand against racism.”

As far as the game is concerned, West Indies were 89-2 at the end of 13 overs after a very slow start where they were 6-0 in the first three overs.

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