Quinton de Kock becomes third South African to slam three consecutive ODI tons

South Africa's young, left-handed opener Quinton de Kock notched up his third consecutive ODI ton in the third and final tie against India at Centurion, to become the third South African - after AB de Villiers and Herschelle Gibbs -- and fifth overall to do so. (Highlights)

De Kock's 116-ball essay of 100 included nine fours and two sixes as he eased the pressure on his skipper at the other end after the Indian bowlers picked up three early wickets. (Match stats) A solid 153-run partnership with De Villiers (when he reached his ton) for the fourth wicket helped South Africa reclaim momentum after an uncanny slip early on. (Scorecard). De Kock became only the second player after Zaheer Abbas to score hundreds in the same bilateral series. This century also helps him take his batting average at home in ODIs to 50.00 -- with 500 runs in 10 innings. (Match Report)

The Indian bowlers have failed to get the better of the diminutive batsman who has a hundred percent conversion rate of 50 to 100. With this ton, he now is only the second cricketer after Ireland's Paul Stirling to record four ODI tons before turning 21. De Kock is also only the third batsman - after New Zealand's Martin Guptill and Zimbabwe's Brendan Taylor -- in the history of the format to score 300-plus runs in a three-match series. (Series in pics)

 

De Kock was far more comfortable in his first two tons and had to show great amount of maturity to get his third on Wednesday. He did and laid the foundation for South Africa to post a big total of 301/8 before the game was abandoned due to rain. (Ishant joins 100-wicket club)

 

For his exemplary performances in the series, he was also given the Man-of-the-Series award. (Can handle pace and bounce better in Tests: Dhoni)