cricketrulz

The South African opener Herschelle Gibbs spoke to The Indian Express about his home team Cape Cobras, his IPL team Deccan Chargers, South African cricket and how he ovecame his alcohol problem.

Did you expect to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League?

We don't have big names like other teams do, but the boys have put up a good show so far. There is no reason why they can't carry on the good work from here. Everybody has seen how Andrew Puttick and JP Duminy did in the last two games.

How disappointing was it to lose the Champions Trophy at home?

Any loss is disappointing, but we just weren't good that day. One needs a bit of luck too, it's just one of the things. I really don't know where our luck disappears in big tournaments. We have played some good cricket in the last two years, and we were the number one team before the Champions Trophy. If you look at our history, we have made it to the semi-finals in the last three World Cups. Not a bad effort.

How has South Africa shaped up under Graeme Smith's captaincy?

In the last two years, we have been playing with the same squad of players. When you have the same set of people playing continuously, it helps. We also have a good relationship with Micky Arthur and with guys gaining more experience, we will get better.

How did you get past your issues with alcohol?

People make mistakes and I am no exception. All I could do was learn from my errors. When I retire and look back, I just want to feel happy that I gave my everything to the game.

How tough was it to recover?

Life should be hard, otherwise there is no point in living. I went to rehab for a few months and came back a better person. I'm a lot more open-minded now.