Head coach Shuki Conrad says de Kock’s inclusion for the next two World Cups will depend largely on his form and fitness
Firdose Moonda22-Sep-2025It was around 2am in Darwin in early August and South Africa’s all-format coach Shukri Conrad was ready to call it a night, when his phone rang.”It was Quinny (Quinton de Kock),” Conrad said at a press conference on Monday morning. “He just expressed the desire to play for South Africa again in both white-ball formats. We chatted for a bit and I said I’d come back to him in a couple of days. Then, I chatted to a few other people and the rest is history.”De Kock has now been included in South Africa’s white-ball squads to play Pakistan next month, after last appearing for the national side in June 2024, effectively ending his ODI retirement and T20I sabbatical. The few people Conrad spoke to would have included selection convener Patrick Moroney, who has been in the role since August, and potentially some senior members of South Africa’s ODI and T20I set-up. All of them appear to have been taken by surprise, especially as Conrad emphasised they “didn’t initiate” any discussions with de Kock after his name was last mentioned in discussions over national selection almost a year ago.Related
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Last September, former white-ball coach Rob Walter, who was in charge when de Kock retired from ODIs after the 2023 World Cup, said he didn’t know whether de Kock wanted to play for South Africa again. At the time, Walter also said he would not have any further conversations with de Kock on the matter but “left the door open for him to approach me.” When Walter was replaced by Conrad this year, de Kock, who is 32, seemed to think the arrangement still stood.”He called of his own free will and he expressed a desire to play for South Africa again,” Conrad said. “He said, ‘I still think I’ve got a lot to offer. I miss playing for South Africa. I want to play for the Proteas and I think I can make a difference.’ Quinny and I had a little short time together during that England series right at the beginning of my tenure (January 2023) and he really enjoyed it but I don’t know if that’s anything to do with it. When someone of Quinny’s calibre expresses a desire to play and he’s on board full on, it’s great. He wants to play for South Africa. Who am I to stop him?”Crucially, Conrad confirmed de Kock made himself available without conditions. “There’s nothing like, ‘I’m only available for a World Cup,’ or this or that. There are actually no strings attached,” he said. “The questions were quite simply: why would you like to come back? Are you committing to all (white-ball) formats? So it’s not just with the T20 World Cup around the corner. The guy’s committed to playing all (white-ball) formats for South Africa, however we choose to use him.”Quinton de Kock has been playing T20 leagues around the world•Sportzpics for MLCStill, it would be difficult not to see the next two ICC tournaments – next year’s T20 World Cup and especially the 2027 ODI World Cup, which will be co-hosted in South Africa – as draw cards for de Kock, though he has not been promised anything about appearing at either event. “There’s by no means any guarantees with regards to World Cups or anything,” Conrad said. “We’ve got a great opportunity to get him playing in this Pakistan series and then we’ll see how this goes. If everything adds up – form and fitness – then he obviously stakes a massive claim to be included in the T20 World Cup to start off with. There’s a bit of water to flow under this bridge. I just think it’s a start.”South Africa will play 14 more T20Is (one in Namibia, three in Pakistan, five in India and five at home against West Indies) in preparation for next year’s World Cup and it is yet to be confirmed whether de Kock will feature in all of them. Even if he does, whether he gets back his spot at the top of the order is also in question, especially after Conrad decided on an opening pair of Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton. With the likes of Dewald Brevis at No. 4 and Lhuan-dre Pretorius waiting in the wings, finding a spot for de Kock could prove difficult but Conrad appears keen to find a place for de Kock, especially given his experience.”He debuted very young (at the age of 20). So he experienced a lot of what Brevis and Lhuan-dre experienced and I think he’ll be a great sounding board for them,” Conrad said. “He’s one of the easiest guys to get along with. He’s really just a matter-of-fact kind of guy, he wants to give up his best for South Africa. He knows his way around the international scene. He’s toured Pakistan before, which is always a tough place to go and tour. So I think he’ll be a great sounding board for these younger players. He adds a lot from behind the stumps. He just brings so much to the side, not only on the field, but obviously in the change room as well.”The format de Kock will not return in is Tests, which he retired from in late 2021, citing a desire to spend time with his family. He remains a part of the T20 league circuit and plays in the IPL, where his price almost halved from US$0.81 million in 2024 when he was retained by Lucknow Super Giants to US$0.43 million when he was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders last season, MLC and SA20. De Kock’s most recent deal came at the SA20 auction where Sunrisers Eastern Cape picked him up for R2.4 million (US$ 139,000 approx.) after he was released from Durban’s Super Giants.
