He is regaining his beast mode.
The KKR retention list will likely have some wicketkeeper-batters, as they were mediocre throughout IPL 2025. The biggest disappointment was Quinton de Kock, who joined the Knight Riders for INR 3.60 crore, but he was far from his best.
Quinton could only score 152 runs at an average of 21.71 and a strike rate of 129.91 in eight innings, including a fifty. These numbers weren’t good enough for an overseas player, and KKR eventually dropped him midway through the season to accommodate Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
However, the South African batter recently reversed his international retirement and has shown his ruthless best against Pakistan on his comeback, especially in the ODI format. In the second ODI, Quinton scored 123 runs in 119 balls, including eight boundaries and seven maximums, at a strike rate of 103.36 to power his team to an emphatic victory.
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Slowly, he is getting back to his old rhythm, and early traces have been visible throughout the ongoing Pakistan tour, even if he didn’t score too many in the T20I rubber. That might be encouraging news for both South Africa and the Knight Riders, and the latter may need to make late changes to the KKR retention list before the IPL 2026 auction.
Understandably, Kolkata Knight Riders will be frustrated with how their IPL 2025 went, especially with the performances of overseas players, and the KKR retention list won’t have a lot of them. Among them will likely be Quinton de Kock, but the franchise might need to think twice before letting him go.
Firstly, he is regaining his beast mode again, and with international return, the southpaw will face a lot more quality bowling than he did in various T20 leagues. One big reason for his poor form was the lack of adequate bowling standards because IPL brings the best bowlers in the mix, something other T20 leagues can’t boast of.
Since Quinton de Kock continued to face low-quality attacks, his progress was hindered, and he failed to maintain the same consistency in the IPL. Additionally, the upcoming auction will be a mini version, so not many skilled wicketkeeper-batters will be available to match Quinton’s abilities.
There are a few English options in this department, such as Ben Duckett and Jamie Smith, but IPL teams will be wary of their availability, given Harry Brook’s incident. So, KKR can look to give another chance to Quinton, who doesn’t cost a big sum and brings vast experience, and retain him before the IPL 2026 auction.
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