Proteas T20 and ODI captain Quinton de Kock confirmed he’s agreed to be Test skipper as a short-term measure for seven matches during the current season, “until someone really puts up their hand”.
I WON’T BE DOING THAT – DE KOCK
“The guys are looking for a long-term leadership role and I won’t be doing that,” De Kock said in a virtual press conference on Monday.
Although the original reason for De Kock not being made Test captain was an overload of responsibility on him as a leading batsman as well as wicketkeeper, he said he would continue as wicketkeeper in the upcoming two-Test series against Sri Lanka.
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De Kock said his objective for the Test season was to hasten the development of young players with South Africa needing to make up too much ground to be a factor in the ICC World Test Championship.
“We doubt whether we’ll be playing in the final of the championship,” he said.
“We have young players who need to learn – and to learn fast. I want the new guys to come in and start putting up their hands.”
QUINTON DE KOCK: TEST PITCHES WILL HAVE PACE & BOUNCE
De Kock said he expected the pitches in Centurion and Johannesburg to have pace and bounce.
He said South Africa wanted to play clever, aggressive Test cricket in an attempt to reverse a 2-0 series loss when Sri Lanka toured South Africa in 2018/19.
The first Test at Centurion will start on Boxing Day, Saturday, December 26, while the second Test at the Wanderers will begin on January 3.
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