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Cape Town - Herschelle Gibbs has almost become the forgotten face of South African cricket following his retirement from the four-day game and his decision to become a limited overs specialist.
His situation was compounded by the fact that the Nashua Mobile Cape Cobras failed to qualify for this season’s edition of the Champions’ League.
Consequently he will make his first appearance of the summer this weekend when the Cobras travel to Sahara Stadium Kingsmead on Friday for the opening MTN40 match against the Nashua Dolphins.
His presence along with Justin Kemp, another warhorse of South African cricket, should give the Cobras the know-how and experience to be one of the teams to beat in both this season’s limited overs competitions.
The defending champions, the Chevrolet Warriors, start their campaign on Sunday against the Nashua Titans who had the unusual experience last season of not landing any of the three domestic trophies.
The Warriors have had a rough start to the season with bad weather seriously curtailing their last eight days of first-class cricket allied to their top order, with the exception of Ashwell Prince, not showing much form.
The Warriors are, of course, the team most affected by Proteas’ call-ups, yet they were in much the same position last season when the franchise regulars got them through to the knock-out phase before the international stars returned to put the first trophies in the cabinet.
Colin Ingram and Rusty Theron were not Proteas a year ago and made telling contributions to their trophy successes. They also had Johan Botha available for most of the MTN40 campaign.
Good news for the Warriors is that Davy Jacobs is back at the helm for the first time since injury and his inspirational captaincy has clearly been a factor in their successes. Mark Boucher is a week away from his return and that will strengthen the Warriors further.
The second match on Sunday pits the bizhub Highveld Lions against the Chevrolet Knights at the high-scoring Senwes Park ground.
The Knights, like the Titans, are normally around at the business end when trophies are decided but missed out last season.
One of their stalwarts, Morne van Wyk, is playing at the top of his form at the moment and the Knights are also benefiting from the fact that Ryan McLaren is surplus to Proteas’ requirements at the moment. He is rapidly establishing himself as the top all-rounder in the domestic game.
They have always been a breeding ground for young talent and they have some good youngsters such as Reza Hendricks, Dean Elgar, Rilee Rossouw and Obus Pienaar on the upwardly mobile trail.
The Lions are experiencing something of a renaissance at present and their success in last season’s Standard Bank Pro20 will no doubt rub off on this season’s MTN40 campaign.
His situation was compounded by the fact that the Nashua Mobile Cape Cobras failed to qualify for this season’s edition of the Champions’ League.
Consequently he will make his first appearance of the summer this weekend when the Cobras travel to Sahara Stadium Kingsmead on Friday for the opening MTN40 match against the Nashua Dolphins.
His presence along with Justin Kemp, another warhorse of South African cricket, should give the Cobras the know-how and experience to be one of the teams to beat in both this season’s limited overs competitions.
The defending champions, the Chevrolet Warriors, start their campaign on Sunday against the Nashua Titans who had the unusual experience last season of not landing any of the three domestic trophies.
The Warriors have had a rough start to the season with bad weather seriously curtailing their last eight days of first-class cricket allied to their top order, with the exception of Ashwell Prince, not showing much form.
The Warriors are, of course, the team most affected by Proteas’ call-ups, yet they were in much the same position last season when the franchise regulars got them through to the knock-out phase before the international stars returned to put the first trophies in the cabinet.
Colin Ingram and Rusty Theron were not Proteas a year ago and made telling contributions to their trophy successes. They also had Johan Botha available for most of the MTN40 campaign.
Good news for the Warriors is that Davy Jacobs is back at the helm for the first time since injury and his inspirational captaincy has clearly been a factor in their successes. Mark Boucher is a week away from his return and that will strengthen the Warriors further.
The second match on Sunday pits the bizhub Highveld Lions against the Chevrolet Knights at the high-scoring Senwes Park ground.
The Knights, like the Titans, are normally around at the business end when trophies are decided but missed out last season.
One of their stalwarts, Morne van Wyk, is playing at the top of his form at the moment and the Knights are also benefiting from the fact that Ryan McLaren is surplus to Proteas’ requirements at the moment. He is rapidly establishing himself as the top all-rounder in the domestic game.
They have always been a breeding ground for young talent and they have some good youngsters such as Reza Hendricks, Dean Elgar, Rilee Rossouw and Obus Pienaar on the upwardly mobile trail.
The Lions are experiencing something of a renaissance at present and their success in last season’s Standard Bank Pro20 will no doubt rub off on this season’s MTN40 campaign.
