ASHLEY DUBE
WINDHOEK – In a regional T20 World Cup qualifying match held at Wanderers Cricket Ground in Windhoek, Zimbabwe faced a disappointing loss against the host nation Namibia; falling by seven wickets.
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| Zimbabwe fell to Namibia in the opening match of the 2022–23 ICC Men's T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier. |
The Chevrons were put into bat first after Namibia won the toss, and they struggled to find their rhythm throughout their innings, managing to score only 132/8.
The opening pair of Nick Welch and Tadiwanashe Marumani continued their struggles in international cricket as both were dismissed early.
Marumani was out for a two-ball duck, while Welch was clean bowled on 8. Veteran Sean Williams followed suit, getting out on the very next ball by edging one to the wicketkeeper.
Sikandar Raza and former captain Craig Ervine then tried to stabilize the innings with a 55-run partnership before Ervine was caught off the bowling of Lungamene for 36.
Raza also fell soon after, scoring 20 runs—and from thereon, the Chevrons struggled to put up a decent total; with only Ryan Burl managing a solid score of an unbeaten 27, although with a low strike rate.
The Namibian bowlers were superb throughout the innings, with JJ Smit being the pick of the bowling unit, finishing with figures of 3/24.
Credit must be accorded to Namibian captain Gerhard Erasmus for his superb tactical bowling changes and field placements.
In the chase, opener Niko Davin led the charge for Namibia, dominating the Chevrons' bowlers, particularly during the powerplay.
He fell just 11 runs short of a T20 hundred, scoring his knock off 45 deliveries. More than 50 percent of his runs came from boundaries, hitting 10 fours and 4 sixes.
Fellow opener Michael Van Lingen provided ample support with a score of 30 as Namibia chased down the target with more than 30 balls to spare.
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