18 Facts about Herschelle Gibbs – The Flamboyant South African Opener

Herschelle Gibbs is one of the most controversial names in the cricket world. Ever since his alleged involvement in the match-fixing scandal came up, he had to face a lot of ups and down in his personal as well as cricket career. But truth be told, Gibbs is still remarked as one of the finest and most aggressive opening batsmen to have ever played the game of cricket. Here are some interesting facts about Herschelle Gibbs.

1. Early life:

Gibbs was born on 23 February 1974 at Green Point in Cape Town. He attended St Joseph’s Marist College and later moved to Diocesan College in Rondebosch. He was an active sportsman ever since his childhood and was a part of the school team for various sports such as soccer, rugby, and cricket.

2. Nickname:

He is fondly known as Scooter among his teammates.

3. Early start to cricket:

He made giant strides in his cricket career playing in the age groups to make his first-class debut at a bare age of 16 in 1990-91 season.

4. Playing style:

Gibbs is a kind of batsman who rarely depends on copy book style of batting. A right-handed batsman he is said to have never practiced in the nets before the match as he believes some shots come instantaneously in the matches. A hard hitting flamboyant hitter of the ball, Gibbs is remembered for his uncanny ability to hit the long ball.

5. Comparisons with Jonty Rhodes

At backward point, he was considered by some to be the next Jonty Rhodes with his ability to hit the stumps. When South Africans wondered who would replace Jonty as a fielder of the most predatory type, Gibbs answered the call.

6. International debut:

Herschelle Gibbs made his ODI debut against Kenya in 1996 and came in to bat at number 4. He could score just 17 runs in the match. His Test debut was against India at Eden Gardens in front of a packed stadium. He scored 31 and 9 in the two innings but fellow debutant Lance Klusener picked up all accolades with figures of 8/64 in the 2nd innings.

7. Century at last:

It took Gibbs 3 years to score his maiden tons in both the formats. He scored his first international century (125), in an ODI against West Indies in Port Elizabeth in 1999. In March, he smashed an unbeaten 211 at Christchurch, which was his maiden Test century. He took 468 balls to score his double ton. His other double hundred in Test cricket came against Pakistan at Newlands when he scored 228 of just 240 balls.

8. Partnership records:

During his innings of 228 against Pakistan at Newlands, he formed a 368-run partnership with Graeme Smith for the first wicket, a South African record. He went on to record another couple of 300-run opening stands with his captain, making them the only pair in Test history to break 300 on three occasions. He also holds the South African second-wicket record, a partnership of 315* with Jacques Kallis.

9. Dropped the World Cup:

Gibbs paid for his overconfidence in a Super Eights World Cup match against Australia at Headingley in 1999. Steve Waugh flicked it straight to him at midwicket, where in his rush to celebrate with a skyward hurl, he dropped the ball. It cost South Africa the match as Waugh, then on 56, went on to score 120 and won the match for Australia. It was said that Waugh sledged Gibbs after the incident quoting, “You just dropped the World Cup son”.

Have you seen the catch that changed the course of the 1999 World Cup? – Watch: Did Herschell Gibbs Drop the World Cup with this Catch?

10. Almost 4 successive tons:

Gibbs is one of the only five batsmen in ODI history to score hundreds in three consecutive innings, the others being Zaheer Abbas and Saeed Anwar (Pakistan), AB de Villiers and Quinton de Kock (South Africa). He struck 116 against Kenya in September 2002, followed it up with an unbeaten 116 against India in the very next match. His third ton 153, against Bangladesh, came at Potchefstroom. He almost hit his 4th century, when South Africa were chasing 155 for the win. He was left stranded on 97 as Alok Kapali bowled a leg-side wide that went for a boundary and the task became impossible for him.

11. Heroics at Wanderers:

His greatest knock came in the greatest match of ODI history when South Africa scored 438 while chasing a gigantic target of 434 set by Australia at the Wanderers in 2006. Chasing 434, Gibbs was on the money straightaway and hit a blistering 175 off just 111 balls to seal the game for his side.

12. Match fixing controversy:

Gibbs was involved in the match-fixing affair with former captain Hansie Cronje, who offered him $15,000 to score “less than 20” in an innings. Gibbs did not agree to the terms and went on to score 74. However, the allegations continued against him and he was banned for six months.

13. Smoking Marijuana

In 2001, during South Africa’s tour to West Indies, Gibbs was one of the several players who were caught smoking marijuana in the dressing room. All the players were fined by Cricket South Africa.

A few others have been caught in the act as well – 7 Infamous incidents when cricketers were banned for doping

14. Six 6s in an over:

He became the first player to hit 6 sixes in one over in ODI cricket, doing so against the Netherlands in the 2007 World Cup. He hit Daan Van Bunge for 6 sixes in an over.

15. League cricket:

In April 2008, Herschelle Gibbs joined the Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League. He failed in the first season but came back strong in the second season, which the Chargers won, and formed the most destructive opening pair with Adam Gilchrist in the tournament. He made a gritty half century on the night of finals to clinch the title for his side. He later joined the Mumbai Indians franchise. Khulna Royal Bengals in the Bangladesh Premier League bought him for $50000 in 2012. He was also a part of St. Lucia Zouks in the Caribbean Premier League. In the 2011/12 season, the Perth Scorchers signed Gibbs for their campaign in the Australian Big Bash League. He recently represented the Leo Lions in the Masters Champions League.

16. The Man for the Scorchers

Playing for the Perth Scorchers in the BBL, Gibbs ended up being the 3rd highest run scorer of the season in 2011-12. He scored 302 runs in 7 matches with an average of 43.14. His prominent batting helped the Scorchers to participate in the Champions League T20 which was held in South Africa in September 2012.

17. Personal life:

On 8 June 2007, he got married in St Kitts to Tenielle Povey but divorced soon after.

18. Major caps:

Gibbs has represented various teams in his career. The most notable mentions are- South Africa, Cape Cobras, Deccan Chargers, Durham, Durham 2nd XI, Glamorgan, Khulna Royal Bengals, Mumbai Indians, Northern Districts, Perth Scorchers, St Lucia Zouks, Titans, Western Province, Yorkshire and Leo Lions.