Former South African player Herschelle Gibbs was one of the liveliest batters of his generation. Gibbs was an important cog in the glorious wheel of South Africa cricket in the decade of the 2000s. Going further in this article, we will take a look at his top 3 innings in Test cricket.
3. 228 vs Pakistan, 2003
This is the best batting performance in Herschelle Gibbs’s Test career. The South African opener scored 228 runs against Pakistan at Cape Town. The Proteas won this Test match by an innings and 142 runs in which Gibbs had an instrumental role to play. His double century in the first innings propelled South Africa to 620 runs. Gibbs smashed 228 runs off just 240 deliveries. His batting stint did not let the visitors settle in the contest. Hence, Pakistan couldn’t make a comeback in the match and lost it by a huge margin.
2. 211* vs New Zealand, 1999
This was the first time Herschelle Gibbs crossed the 200-run mark in his Test career. He achieved this feat against New Zealand in their backyard in Christchurch. In the first innings, South Africa restricted New Zealand to 168 runs. Now it was the time for the South African batters to take a massive lead. Gibbs led his batting unit by scoring a memorable double-century. Courtesy of his outstanding unbeaten knock, South Africa posted 442 runs on the board before declaring their innings.
1. 196 vs India, 2001
Here is another batting effort that was reflective of Herschelle Gibbs’ unmatched ability to dominate the opposition. He scored these 196 runs in the first innings putting the opposition under pressure right from the start. This knock was played in adverse situations as South Africa kept losing wickets at regular intervals and none of the prominent batters could make it big. However, Gibbs was steadfast at one end and guided his team to a challenging total of 362 runs in the first innings.
Also read: Ranking Harry Brook’s top 3 batting performances in Tests