The Namibian T20 cricket team will hope to exit this year’s T20 Cricket World Cup with their dignity intact. Namibia will take their final bow at the 2024 T20 World Cup this weekend, having left their mark on the competition by playing in the first T20 World Cup super over since the 2012 edition. After a sterling performance against Oman and Scotland, which could have gone either way, their egos were severely bruised against an unruly Australia.
That nail-biter came in their opening match of the competition against Oman when both sides scored 109. The Eagles secured an 11-run victory in the tie-breaking over, thanks to a stellar performance from David Wiese, who blasted 13* off four balls. The Eagles put in another impressive performance in match two against Scotland, setting a defendable target of 156, but the Scots dominated their run chase and secured the points with 1.3 overs to spare.
England, on the other hand, will look to keep their 2024 T20 World Cup Super Eight hopes alive this coming Saturday at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. Heading into the final round of matches in the group stage, England is currently in third place with three points, while Namibia is fourth and unable to qualify for the knockouts. While any lingering hopes of reaching the Super Eight were dashed by Australia midweek, Namibia will have a chance to make headlines once more by taking the defending champions out with them.
After a no-result outcome in their opening match against Scotland and a heavy defeat to Australia in game two, England found themselves in a tight spot against minnows Oman on Thursday. Fortunately for England, Adil Rashid (4/11), Jofra Archer (3/12), and Mark Wood (3/12) crushed Oman, sharing the wickets to bowl their opponents out for 47 runs in only 13.2 overs. Jos Buttler then scored a quickfire 24 off eight balls to lead the side to victory in just 3.1 overs.
A victory this weekend for England will see them draw level on five points with the Scots, who face Australia on Sunday. Should both British teams end level on points, the side with the better net run rate will progress alongside the Aussies to the Super Eight, meaning that Buttler and company will have to aim for another run rate-boosting victory.
