Cricket
Gibbs still T20 force in UK
2012-07-02 15:16
Rob Houwing, Sport24 chief writer
Cape Town – Still one of the finest hired guns in Twenty20
cricket, aged a ripe old 38.
That is the status of former Proteas favourite Herschelle
Gibbs, whose current employ on the booming world T20 circuit is for Durham in
county cricket’s Friends Life T20 competition.
On Sunday Gibbs and opening partner Phil Mustard made light
work of chasing down a modest target after defending champions Leicestershire
were restricted to 114 for seven.
Mustard made 51 and Gibbs an unbeaten 49 off 34 balls (five
fours, two sixes) as Durham, captained by fellow South African Dale
Benkenstein, romped home by nine wickets in only 13.1 overs at their home base
of Chester-le-Street.
Gibbs is joint top of the runs-scoring list in the
competition with Australian left-hander Phil Hughes of Worcestershire, and has
been especially prolific at Chester-le-Street – his previous two knocks there
are 83 not out against Derbyshire and 76 against Yorkshire.
The only Leicestershire bowler to command any respect in the
chase was Gibbs’s former Cape Cobras and South Africa team-mate Claude
Henderson, the 40-year-old left-arm spinner who only conceded 18 in his full
four-over spell.