Trinidad & Tobago will be foolish to undermine the Gibbs threat in today's Champions League
Trinidad & Tobago will be foolish to undermine the Gibbs threat in today's Champions Leagueu00a0
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Cape Cobras star Herschelle Gibbs.
PIC/GETTY IMAGES |
If you have to single out the biggest individual failures of the inaugural Champions League Twenty20, it will be a unanimous choice Herschelle Gibbs. The aggressive top-order batsman, being the most experienced cricketer in Cape Cobras' side, was supposed to lead the charge for his team in the tournament.u00a0 With scores of 0, 1 and 0 in the three matches that he has figured in so far, Gibbs has a lot to ponder going into tonight's semi-final against the in-form Trinidad and Tobago at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
But the 35-year-old, who was one of the anchors of Deccan Chargers' triumph in the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) earlier this year, does not feel he is going through a bad patch. "I think I have just been unlucky. It's difficult to lose form in 10 days and this tournament has only gone on for two weeks," Gibbs told MiD DAY after his team's final net session ahead of tonight's all-important clash.
Even though he arrived in his "home" city on a high after Chargers' triumphant IPL campaign, Gibbs had a lot to prove when it came to the Uppal Stadium. As Chargers lost all their home games in the inaugural IPL season, Gibbs also had a disastrous outing at the home ground. With three single-digit scores in four innings at Chargers' home ground in 2008, he managed just 67 runs at home in IPL-I.
But Gibbs, who doesn't have an impressive record in India, didn't think he was jinxed when it came to performing in India, especially in the City of Nizams. "Sometimes I take a little bit too long to get in. I just tend to hit the ball from Ball One. I have been in such a situation a few times before this and I've always come out of it," Gibbs said.
Instead, Gibbs pointed out that he is looking forward to carry on his good form this year. "The way things have gone this year for me, I have been a lot more consistent. I think I am backing myself a bit more now. I'm playing with a lot more confidence and going out there and hitting the ball hard and that's what I do best, you know. Sometimes it takes me a little too long to give myself a chance. But hopefully I can turn out to be a bit differently this time," Gibbs said.
Thanks to his reputation of a big-match player, Gibbs couldn't have asked for a better opportunity than tonight to turn the tables around. "Look, I like the semi-finals and finals, irrespective of what tournament am I really playing. It's just something about those games. I just like the big moments and that bring the best out of me.
So as I said, tomorrow it's going to be a good wicket and hopefully I can entertain the home crowd," Gibbs said.
If Gibbs lives up to his reputation yet again, Trinidad and Tobago will find it really difficult to enter tomorrow's final.
