“Don’t think of family when you play overseas leagues for 2 months?” Salman Butt blasts Quinton de Kock over Test retirement

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has lashed out at Quinton de Kock over his sudden retirement from Test cricket to spend more time with family. According to Butt, abrupt retirements are becoming like a ‘drama’ in international cricket.

Following South Africa’s 113-run loss to India in Centurion on Thursday, De Kock stunned world cricket by announcing his decision to retire from Tests with immediate effect. The 29-year-old scored 34 and 21 in what turned out to be his last Test match.

Hitting out at De Kock, Butt said that such sudden moves harm the team environment. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former cricketer opined:

“Quinton de Kock had been playing strange cricket for the last year and a half. He came to Pakistan as captain but did not continue in the role afterwards. Now, after playing one Test, he has announced his (Test) retirement. Such things spoil the team’s balance, the selection policy and affect the captain’s mindset.”

Butt blamed the plethora of franchise leagues across the globe for pulling young players away from the traditional format. The 37-year-old added:

“Players have made sudden retirement a drama. Don’t you think of family when you play overseas leagues for nearly 2 months? Why is it that only Test cricket comes in the way? You are playing cricket in your own country in South Africa. This lack of interest is related to league cricket.”

De Kock courted controversy during the T20 World Cup in the UAE when he refused to take a knee in the match against West Indies and sat out of the game. He later apologized and took a knee in the remaining matches.

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“Have no good words for Quinton de Kock’s retirement” - Salman Butt

Butt claimed that since cricket boards do not have a say in players’ retirement, the freedom is being misused. According to him, the abrupt retirement of players is something that needs to be looked into seriously. Butt concluded:

“Because cricket boards do not have a say in this, it is freedom at the cost of… I can’t explain. But some cricketers have started feeling that playing league cricket is enough. Why do they need to do the hard yards in Test cricket? This is not the attitude to play international cricket. Sorry, I have no good words for Quinton de Kock's retirement.”

Having made his Test debut in 2014, De Kock finished his international red-ball career with 3300 runs in 54 matches at an average of 38.82, with six hundreds and 22 fifties.