South African opener Quinton de Kock became the fastest wicketkeeper-batter to 6,000 runs in ODI cricket. De Kock went past former Indian skipper MS Dhoni with a 45-run knock against Australia in the second ODI at Mangaung Oval, Bloemfontein on September 9. The southpaw reached the milestone in 142 innings.
Dhoni, who held the previous record, achieved the feat in 166 innings. De Kock also became the second-fastest South African batter to complete 6,000 ODI runs after Hashim Amla. Overall, he is the eighth-fastest to reach the 6,000-run mark.
De Kock also became the first-ever Proteas wicketkeeper-batter to score 6,000 ODI runs. Only four wicketkeeper-batters have achieved this rare feat in ODIs. Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara is on top with 13,341 runs followed by Dhoni (10,773 runs), Australia's Adam Gilchrist (9,410 runs), and Bangladesh's Mushfiqur Rahim (6,847 runs). De Kock now has 6,019 ODI runs to his name.
Earlier this month, the 30-year-old had announced his retirement from ODI cricket. A few minutes after Cricket South Africa (CSA) announced the World Cup squad, it was revealed that De Kock will retire from ODIs after the mega event’s completion.
Against Mitchell Marsh-led Australia, De Kock got the hosts off to a flyer in the massive run chase of 393. He scored 45 runs from just 30 balls. His power-packed knock featured six fours and two sixes on a batting paradise of a pitch. He got caught and bowled to Nathan Ellis. He shared an 81-run opening partnership with skipper Temba Bavuma who scored 46 runs from 40 balls.
South Africa could not pose a challenge in the mammoth run chase and got bowled out for 269 from 41.5 overs, losing the match by a big margin of 123 runs.
The Marsh-led side took a 2-0 lead in the five-ODI series. The big positive was David Warner returning to form and hitting his 20th ODI century which broke several records. Also, Marnus Labuschagne scored his second ODI ton which helped Australia post a massive total on the board. The two teams will face each other on September 12 at Senwes Park, Potchefstroom.
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