With their skill and spirit, Ben Shikongo, JJ Smit, and Jan Frylinck defeated Sri Lanka decisively.
Namibia rallied from 93-6 to 163-7 in the final five overs.
On Sunday at Kardinia Park in Geelong, Namibia stunned Sri Lanka with a thrilling 55-run victory in the opening match of round 1 of the T20 World Cup.
Frylinck (44 off 28 balls) and JJ Smit (31 off 16 balls) had earlier played crucial roles with the bat.
Namibia scored 163 in just 20 overs after being given the opportunity to bat first. Namibia was in serious trouble after scoring 93 for 6 in 14.2 overs. In just 34 balls, Jan Frylinck (44 off 28 balls; 4/4); JJ Smit (31 not out off 16 balls; 2/4, 2/6; 70 runs), and the seventh wicket put together a partnership of 70 runs. The partnership ended up winning the game.
When Sri Lanka’s batting order was in trouble, Jan Frylinck and JJ Smit and their seamers scythed their way through it. Ben Shikongo took two wickets in two balls during the powerplay, and David Wiese and Frylinck also made significant catches.
When Shanaka was out for 29, Sri Lanka was down to three wickets and their chase was all but over with 76 runs remaining.
Player of the Match Frylinck stated: “Currently, I find myself somewhat speechless. I’m currently very happy and excited because what we’ve just accomplished exceeds our expectations.”
“It’s been an amazing journey,” said Namibia’s captain, Gerhard Erasmus. We had a thrilling year last year, and this time we beat it with a fantastic victory.
The game wasn’t even close in the end. Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Dasun Shanaka managed the greatest score of their innings, 34, for Sri Lanka, who never seemed to be in control of the 164-run chase. On a slow Geelong surface that encouraged pace off the ball, Namibia’s bowlers consistently changed up their tempo. The batters for Sri Lanka continued striking out. They were eventually all out for 108 at the end of the 19th over.
Meanwhile, Namibia had accomplished what was arguably the biggest upset in the history of their men’s team. They had defeated Full Member Ireland in the last T20 World Cup to go to the main draw. This time, they defeated a team that had just been crowned Asia Cup champions and one that had won their previous five straight T20I matches.
Frylinck and Smit fought with fire
This is the game’s turning moment if there was one to be found. With 34 balls remaining in the innings, Namibia was 93 for 6. Given how swiftly wickets were falling and the fact that their most renowned batsmen were already out, they appeared to be bound for a score of less than 140.
However, this is the point at which Frylinck and Smit put together a magnificent seventh-wicket stand. Frylinck started their barrage by hitting Dushmantha Chameera square on the legside for four runs in the sixteenth over. Smit then smacked Wanindu Hasaranga over deep midwicket in the following over. Following that, the runs came swiftly. Smit hammered another six over deep midwicket, and Frylinck rapidly reached 44 off of 28 while he also reached an outstanding 31 not out of 16. They had combined to score 70 runs off the final 34 balls, raising their total to a respectable amount.
Poor Powerplay by Sri Lanka
In their Asia Cup run, Sri Lanka’s openers had been essential, but here, Kusal Mendis and Pathum Nissanka were unable to surpass single figures. First out, Mendis top-edged a Wiese delivery after attempting to draw it in the second over.
Nissanka was the first casualty of Shikongo’s double strike after failing to make a lofted drive clear midfield. The following ball was nicked by Danushka Gunathilaka to the wicketkeeper, leaving Sri Lanka at 21 for 3. Their power play only attracted 38.
The middle overs felt apart
It’s possible that the middle class’s collapse was more dramatic. After a brief attempt at recovery by Shanaka and Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka’s batters began searching for boundaries due to the rising necessary rate. They horribly failed, as Namibia’s bowlers made full advantage of the slow surface.
Sri Lanka lost five wickets between the tenth and seventeenth overs (42 balls), scored 25 runs, and produced no boundaries. In fact, just four batters were able to hit a boundary across the whole batting order.
The seamers for Namibia were excellent during this time, but Bernard Scholtz, a left-arm spinner, also stood out, taking 2 for 18 from his four overs.
Match ended with a twist
This game’s first 15 overs, roughly, had gone according to plan. Throughout the first three-quarters of their bowling innings, Sri Lanka fielded effectively. At the conclusion of the 14th over, Dhananjaya de Silva took a particularly brilliant sprinting catch at deep square leg. Up to this point, every member of the attack had taken at least one wicket, with Madushan taking two, and Sri Lanka’s quicks had been shown to be difficult to score off.
The quicks were less remarkable at the end.
After making it to the Super 12 stage in their first T20 World Cup appearance last year, Namibia is now aspiring to return there this year. However, Sri Lanka cannot afford any more mistakes as they play the UAE on Tuesday and the Netherlands the following day.
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