Africa-Press – Namibia. DESPITE not making it to the final of the Global T20 tournament, the Richelieu Namibian Eagles bowed out in style with a 21-run victory against the DP World Lions on Sunday.
DESPITE not making it to the final of the Global T20 tournament, the Richelieu Namibian Eagles bowed out in style with a 21-run victory against the DP World Lions on Sunday.
The Lions and the Lahore Qalandars had earlier qualified for yesterday’s final, but on Sunday, Namibia got their first win of the tournament after a great recovery to post 183/8 and then restrict the Lions to 162 all out.
After being sent in to bat by the Lions, Namibia got off to a slow start while they also lost several early wickets.
Michael van Lingen was out for a second-ball duck, Divan La Cock scored 13, and Nicol Loftie-Eaton 2, and when Zane Green was dismissed for 16, Namibia were struggling at 56/4 halfway through their innings.
Craig Williams, playing his last match for Namibia, led the recovery scoring 28 off 29 balls (4×4), before Gerhard Erasmus and Ruben Trumpelmann put Namibia in charge with a great partnership.
They added 78 runs off only 41 balls, with Trumpelmann smashing 49 off 20 balls (2×4, 5×6), while Erasmus remained not out on 63 off 35 balls (2×4, 5×6).
By the end of 20 overs Namibia were well placed at 183/8, having added 124 runs off their final 10 overs.
Erasmus gave Namibia a great start with two wickets in two balls, dismissing both Cameron Delport and Dominic Hendricks for ducks, but Reeza Hendricks (55 off 37 balls, 7×4, 1×6) and Mitchell van Buuren (20) led their revival.
Namibia’s bowlers, however, pegged them back and after 12 overs they were struggling at 81/5.
Further down the order, Wandile Makwetu added 19, Connor Esterhuizen 30 off 14 balls (4×4, 1×6) and Malusi Siboto 24 not out off 13 balls (3×4, 1×6), but the total was always out of reach, while Williams provided a fairy-tale ending when he bowled Ayavuya Myoli for a duck off the last ball of the match.
Williams, who had represented Namibia for 15 years, scoring more than 10 000 runs and taking more than 250 wickets in all formats of the game, said it was always special to play for his country.
“Every time I get to play for the country it’s a great feeling and great experience, so it is a special day today. I’m still getting one more chance to play with the boys and getting a win for the country, so there are a lot of emotions but I’m feeling good,” he said after the game.
“When my first ball was hit for a six I thought I might be getting hit for six sixes in a row, but I just knew I had to land that last ball, and I suppose that’s the way it was supposed to go, with a fairy-tale ending.”
Reflecting on his career, Williams said he had been blessed.
“I’m very privileged and very blessed to have had such a long career, you know, injuries haven’t bothered me, so I’m just grateful to have been able to play so much. I’m just grateful for having been accepted into the squad even at such an old age and the last three years have been super special to be able to join the guys and obviously help build something special for the next generation of guys coming up now,” he said.
Namibia now leave for Papua New Guinea this coming weekend to compete in the Cricket World Cup League 2 50-over competition against the hosts PNG, and the United States.
After that the squad will leave for Australia to start getting ready for the T20 Cricket World Cup from 16 October to 13 November.
Williams, meanwhile, said his team mates had the ability to do well.
“It’s a very good squad – the squad has been together for two or three years now and we’ve got some exciting young players that are coming through. It’s a World Cup so the guys must go out there and enjoy and express themselves. There are obviously a lot of nerves, but there are a couple of names to watch out for, these guys are training and working extremely hard, so watch that space, hopefully there will be some upsets.”
The Lions and the Lahore Qalandars had earlier qualified for yesterday’s final, but on Sunday, Namibia got their first win of the tournament after a great recovery to post 183/8 and then restrict the Lions to 162 all out.
After being sent in to bat by the Lions, Namibia got off to a slow start while they also lost several early wickets.
Michael van Lingen was out for a second-ball duck, Divan La Cock scored 13, and Nicol Loftie-Eaton 2, and when Zane Green was dismissed for 16, Namibia were struggling at 56/4 halfway through their innings.
Craig Williams, playing his last match for Namibia, led the recovery scoring 28 off 29 balls (4×4), before Gerhard Erasmus and Ruben Trumpelmann put Namibia in charge with a great partnership.
They added 78 runs off only 41 balls, with Trumpelmann smashing 49 off 20 balls (2×4, 5×6), while Erasmus remained not out on 63 off 35 balls (2×4, 5×6).
By the end of 20 overs Namibia were well placed at 183/8, having added 124 runs off their final 10 overs.
Erasmus gave Namibia a great start with two wickets in two balls, dismissing both Cameron Delport and Dominic Hendricks for ducks, but Reeza Hendricks (55 off 37 balls, 7×4, 1×6) and Mitchell van Buuren (20) led their revival.
Namibia’s bowlers, however, pegged them back and after 12 overs they were struggling at 81/5.
Further down the order, Wandile Makwetu added 19, Connor Esterhuizen 30 off 14 balls (4×4, 1×6) and Malusi Siboto 24 not out off 13 balls (3×4, 1×6), but the total was always out of reach, while Williams provided a fairy-tale ending when he bowled Ayavuya Myoli for a duck off the last ball of the match.
Williams, who had represented Namibia for 15 years, scoring more than 10 000 runs and taking more than 250 wickets in all formats of the game, said it was always special to play for his country.
“Every time I get to play for the country it’s a great feeling and great experience, so it is a special day today. I’m still getting one more chance to play with the boys and getting a win for the country, so there are a lot of emotions but I’m feeling good,” he said after the game.
“When my first ball was hit for a six I thought I might be getting hit for six sixes in a row, but I just knew I had to land that last ball, and I suppose that’s the way it was supposed to go, with a fairy-tale ending.”
Reflecting on his career, Williams said he had been blessed.
“I’m very privileged and very blessed to have had such a long career, you know, injuries haven’t bothered me, so I’m just grateful to have been able to play so much. I’m just grateful for having been accepted into the squad even at such an old age and the last three years have been super special to be able to join the guys and obviously help build something special for the next generation of guys coming up now,” he said.
Namibia now leave for Papua New Guinea this coming weekend to compete in the Cricket World Cup League 2 50-over competition against the hosts PNG, and the United States.
After that the squad will leave for Australia to start getting ready for the T20 Cricket World Cup from 16 October to 13 November.
Williams, meanwhile, said his team mates had the ability to do well.
“It’s a very good squad – the squad has been together for two or three years now and we’ve got some exciting young players that are coming through. It’s a World Cup so the guys must go out there and enjoy and express themselves. There are obviously a lot of nerves, but there are a couple of names to watch out for, these guys are training and working extremely hard, so watch that space, hopefully there will be some upsets.”
For More News And Analysis About Namibia Follow Africa-Press
