Six sixes in an over
Herschelle Gibbs has become the first player to hit six sixes in an over in a World Cup game. This CNN video on YouTube talks through the event. The 2007 World Cup is taking place in the West Indies...luckily I'll be over there next month to catch a few games in Barbados.
I had the pleasure of playing alongside Herschelle while I played for Avendale in Cape Town years ago (in 1992 - before he made his debut for South Africa). He was a talented and confident player in those days with a great belief in his own abilities - a nice guy too. He was also a phenomenal rugby player and could have represented South Africa in either sport, but - wisely it seems - he chose the cricket path.
What is 'Six sixes in an over?'
In case you're not familiar with cricket: a 'six' is when the batter hits the ball over the boundary (the playing area) without the ball touching the ground along the way - similar to a homerun in baseball. Hitting a six isn't that unsual. Hitting two one after the other happens from time to time. Hitting three in a row is getting into the realms of unusual.
The 'six sixes' refers to there being six deliveries (or 'pitches' in baseball) in an over, so hitting all six deliveries in an over for 'six', one after the other, is an astounding feat that requires a lot skill obviously, but also requires lots of luck for everything happen just right. Hopefully the video makes more sense now :-)
-
Thanks to Korby for passing on the news.