The former South African batter Herschelle Gibbs has indicated a favoritism towards Australia’s Big Bash League (BBL) over the Indian Premier League (IPL), going against the prevailing trend where cricketers worldwide typically prioritize the IPL over other T20 leagues.
The South African cricket great has participated in both leagues. In 2008, he played for Deccan Chargers in the IPL and contributed to the team’s victory in the 2009 edition. After leaving the franchise, he also represented Mumbai Indians in the IPL. Over the span of 2008 to 2012, he played a total of 36 IPL matches and scored 886 runs with six half-centuries to his name.
The South African batter started his IPL journey in the 2011/12 season with the Perth Scorchers, Herschelle Gibbs played a pivotal role in guiding the team to the final. Concluding the tournament as the third-highest run-scorer, he scored an impressive total of 302 runs in seven games. With his playing experiences in both leagues, Gibbs holds the opinion that the BBL stands out as a superior league compared to the IPL.
“Quality of a league is determined by the balance between bat and ball. You always want to have a contest between bat and ball. Opinions will keep going around. The IPL is the biggest but the Big Bash league has more competition between bat and ball,” Herschelle Gibbs told Sports LaunchPad.
Herschelle Gibbs has chosen Virat Kohli over his former teammate AB de Villiers as the better batsman. The former cricketer has praised Kohli’s exceptional desire and hunger for runs.
“He is a genius when it comes to batting. His hunger for runs and his desire to… especially in One-Day games when they chase, that is where you see the difference between him and AB (De Villiers),” Herschelle Gibbs said.
“AB scored a lot of his hundred batting first, not batting second. That is where Virat is an absolute phenomenon. His record is second to none,” he added.
