Star wicketkeeper-batter Quinton de Kock created history as he became the South Africa batter with most centuries against India in ODIs. South Africa's star wicketkeeper-batter achieved this feat after cracked a soldi century in the third ODI against India at the ACA-VDCA cricket stadium in Visakhapatnam on December 6.
Quinton de Kock's historic century in 3rd ODI against India
Notably, it was De Kock's seventh ODI hundred against India. This landmark century cemented his status as one of the most prolific performers against the Men in Blue in the 50-over format.
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By reaching this milestone, the swashbuckling left-handed opener went past several cricketing legends, including Ricky Ponting, AB de Villiers, and Kumar Sangakkara, who each hold six centuries against India. De Kock's seventh ton now sees him join Sanath Jayasuriya at the top of the list of batters with the most ODI hundreds scored against India.
Batters with most ODI centuries against India
Sanath Jayasuriya - 7
Quinton de Kock - 7
AB de Villiers - 6
Ricky Ponting - 6
Kumar Sangakkara - 6
De Kock's century was instrumental in carrying the South African innings, which stood at 176 for 4 in 29.3 overs at that point. His exceptional performance in Vizag was significant not just for the team, but also for his personal record, as it lifted him alongside Kumar Sangakkara at the top of the list for the most ODI hundreds scored by a designated wicketkeeper. Both players now have 23 centuries in this role, occupying a rare bracket ahead of other greats like Shai Hope, Adam Gilchrist, Jos Buttler, AB de Villiers, and MS Dhoni.
De Kock's continued dominance of Indian bowling attacks remains a notable feature in ODI history. His seven hundreds against India have been achieved at a rate unmatched by any other batter. While he and Sanath Jayasuriya lead this exclusive tally, players like AB de Villiers, Ricky Ponting, and Sangakkara follow behind, having taken considerably longer to assemble their respective tallies of centuries against India.
However, De Kock's innings came to a halt in the 33rd over, when Prasidh Krishna got the better of him at 106, which was decorated with eight fours and six maximums when the South Africa's scoreboard read 199/5.
South Africa (Playing XI):
Ryan Rickelton, Quinton de Kock(w), Temba Bavuma(c), Matthew Breetzke, Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman
India (Playing XI):
Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul(w/c), Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna