"I don't know, to be dead honest" - South Africa white-ball coach Rob Walter on Quinton de Kock's T20I status

South Africa has been left in the dark regarding Quinton de Kock's T20I future, following his omission from the upcoming two-match series against Ireland in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The senior wicketkeeper batter last turned up for the Proteas during the finals of the 2024 T20 World Cup against India in Barbados.

Quinton de Kock retired from Tests and ODIs in 2021 and 2023 respectively and does not appear on Cricket South Africa's list of centrally contracted players. He did not take part in the three-match T20I series against the West Indies following the World Cup.

Instead, he featured for the Seattle Orcas in the 2024 Major League Cricket (MLC) season. He is representing the Barbados Royals in the ongoing 2024 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and recently scored an unbeaten, match-winning 87 against the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons.

With de Kock being absent from the squad list yet again, white-ball coach Rob Walter issued a bleak response regarding the player's future within the team in the build-up to the 2026 T20 World Cup.

"I don't know, to be dead honest. For the next little while, there will be no conversations between myself and Quinny as to whether he wants to play for South Africa again. I've left the door open for him to approach me if and when he wants to do that. That might never happen," Walter said in a press conference

"We have to just allow him to have his space, to play league cricket and to do what he needs to do. What will become more and more important is performance. He's not exactly old [de Kock is 31] so from here on in, it's a performance-based conversation," he added

It remains to be seen whether de Kock will be available for the home series against India, which features four T20Is towards the end of the year.

South Africa are equipped with options in Quinton de Kock's absence

The Proteas used Ryan Rickelton and Reeza Hendricks at the top of the order in the recent T20I series against the West Indies. The same combination is likely to continue for the Ireland series as well, especially since Rickelton can keep wickets as well.

In terms of glovesmen, apart from Rickelton, South Africa has options like Kyle Verreynne and Heinrich Klassen. The latter has not been included in the squad for the upcoming tour due to personal reasons. He pulled out of the 2024 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) campaign for the St. Lucia Kings, forcing the franchise to rope in New Zealand's Tim Seifert as a replacement.

"He has some family matters that he is dealing with currently. As soon as that position has changed, he'll obviously fall back into playing again," Walter said of Klaasen.

South Africa's T20I series against Ireland is scheduled to begin from September 27 onwards in Abu Dhabi.