The unexaggerative, unvarnished, unspiced Quinton de Kock

No-one could accuse Quinton de Kock of exaggeration, or of applying any kind of varnish to any situation, or of spicing up his views for the sake of the audience. Fill a room with reporters on the eve of a T20 World Cup Super Eight game against India, and he remains a hear-the-question, answer-the-question, no-frills kind of guy.

It was put to him that South Africa seemed settled and hadn't encountered any issues. Did he agree? "No headaches yet," was the gist of his reply.

He was more effusive about the observation that he seemed to be enjoying playing cricket more than ever since his return from international retirement.

"I'm happy to be back with my boys and playing for the Proteas, for sure," De Kock said. "The break from the international stage was good and to come back and to be refreshed and be with the guys who I really love playing with, and who I've always dreamt of playing with, has been great for me. I love being back with the guys again."

What did he make of his opening partner, Aiden Markram, finishing fourth on the runscorers' list after the group stage? Was Markram doing anything differently?

"I'm not too sure. Maybe just clarity in his role. He never used to open. He used to bat at Nos. 3, 4 and 5; in different situations all the time. So he always had to adapt. As an opening batter, it's pretty much one sort of thing. I think that's easier for him to deal with."

As for Markram's captaincy, which took South Africa all the way to the final of the tournament's 2024 edition…

"We just try and be more consistent in the way we go about things, and he's urged us to do that. He's tried to let the players be ourselves. That's pretty much it. It hasn't changed much; Aiden's Aiden."

What did he think of the India lefthanders' struggles against off-spin?

"It all depends on how the pitch is playing. If it's not turning, it's obviously easier to play the spin. It's always going to be harder for a lefthanded batter against an offie if it's spinning."

How did the South Africans process their loss in the 2024 final?

"We just forgot about it. I don't think any of us wanted to speak about it. Everyone went home and went through their own process. We didn't need to talk about it as a team. That's pretty much it."

Back to India's lefthanders. Would South Africa open the bowling with an off-spinner, as other teams had done against them to great effect?

"I have no clue. We'll see."

Abhishek Sharma has suffered a hattrick of ducks. What advice would De Kock give him?

"I haven't been watching. I've been doing my own thing."

The reporter tried again: "So any advice?"

"He's the No. 1 T20 batter in the world, according to rankings. So he must keep doing what he's doing. He's quite young; he's bound to fail. But being No. 1 obviously means something. I'm sure at some point he's going to play an important knock."

Watching South Africa beat Australia in the WTC final at Lord's last June must have made him happy?

"We weren't watching. I was in America, playing in the MLC, and they don't really have coverage of cricket in that part of the world. We heard about it, and we were happy for the guys. But we just carried on with our tournament."

In a country where cricketers are seen as the gold standard experts on the game, De Kock's unadorned honesty was disarming. The man has no clue who is going to open the bowling? He didn't watch the WTC final? He has no advice for Sharma? Even more strikingly, he has no trouble saying these things?

He doesn't have to think about that. He knows: he's Quinton de Kock. Nothing more, nothing less.