Trinidad and Tobago: CPL: Quinton de Kock Joins Elite T20 Century Club

Basseterre [St Kitts and Nevis], September 2 (ANI): South African batter Quinton de Kock has achieved a significant milestone in his T20 career by tying with Indian cricketer Virat Kohli and Australian player David Warner. This accomplishment makes him the fifth member of the ’10 T20 centuries’ club and places him joint-third on the list of highest century-getters in the T20 format.

De Kock reached this milestone during a Caribbean Premier League (CPL) match while playing for the Barbados Tridents against the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots. He scored 106 runs off 57 balls, which included 11 fours and six sixes, achieving a strike rate of 185.96. With this performance, de Kock, Kohli, and Warner now each have 10 T20 centuries, while Chris Gayle from the West Indies leads the list with 22 centuries in 463 matches, followed by Pakistan’s Babar Azam with 13 centuries in 359 matches.

In addition to his century tally, de Kock is approaching the 13,000-run mark in T20 cricket, which would make him the ninth batter to reach this landmark. Currently, he has accumulated 12,867 runs in 457 matches and 433 innings, maintaining an average of 31.30 and a strike rate of 139.78. His record includes 10 centuries and 84 fifties, with a personal best score of 140 not out. He ranks as the ninth-highest run-scorer in T20 history, with Kieron Pollard from the West Indies at the top of the list, having scored 14,933 runs in 751 matches at an average of 31.77 and a strike rate of 151.17, which includes two centuries and 71 fifties, with a best score of 104.

In the match against St Kitts and Nevis, the Patriots won the toss and opted to bowl first. De Kock’s innings, along with contributions from Zachary Carter, who scored 57 runs off 36 balls with one four and seven sixes, and Sherfane Rutherford, who added 26 runs off 16 balls with three fours and one six, helped the Barbados Tridents post a total of 217 runs for 4 wickets in their 20 overs. Naseem Shah was the standout bowler for St Kitts, taking 2 wickets for 43 runs.

During the chase, St Kitts and Nevis started strong with a partnership of 112 runs between Johnson Charles, who scored 78 runs off 45 balls with six fours and seven sixes, and Kyle Mayers, who contributed 29 runs off 27 balls with three fours. Dasun Shanaka added 36 runs off 22 balls, while Andre Fletcher and Wanindu Hasaranga finished the innings with 22 not out off 8 balls and 18 not out off 4 balls, respectively. St Kitts and Nevis successfully chased down the target, winning by six wickets with five balls remaining. Johnson Charles was awarded the ‘Player of the Match’ for his performance.

This match highlights the competitive nature of the CPL and the impressive achievements of players like Quinton de Kock, who continue to make significant contributions to their teams and the T20 format.

Source: trinidadtimes.com