Namibia won their first Super 12 match against Scotland by 4 wickets with 4 balls left as Scotland were blown hot & cold as they managed only 109 runs at Abu Dhabi on 27th October. For Namibia this is a state of elation as they had come in the tournament as a rookie (*maiden appearance in T20 World Cup) & qualified by beating teams like Netherland & Ireland who have always given tough times to strong teams. Namibia are proving to be the silent assassiners who can damage the momentum of star teams as defeating Scotland and any associate nation doesn’t happen overnight.
Namibia had won the toss & opted to bowl first. Namibia started their innings in tranquility as they made sure that they don’t lose wickets in quick succession; they scored 29 runs for the loss of 1 wicket in the power-play overs. Scotland introduced spin & immediately results were seen as runs dried up which eventually led up to wickets. Chris Greaves the right arm leg spinner, Michael Leask the right arm off spinner & Mark Watt the left arm off spinner provided breakthroughs & applied breaks. Craig Williams the veteran batter of Namibia got impatient as he throwed his wicket; at that point of time Namibia were 67 runs for 4 wickets in 12.3 overs, requiring 43 runs in 45 balls which was gettable yet tough.
David Wiese the hard hitting batter & finisher who earlier had represented South Africa in ICC T20 World Cup 2016 was at the crease along with the young sensation JJ Smit. The task was cut out for Namibia as they needed to bat maturley & wait for errors from bowlers. Both the batters showed a lot of application & pressed the button of wrapping up the match by scoring quick 2s & odd boundary with an unexpected 6; both of them were involved in 35 run partnership. Wiese tried a bit too hard & lost his wicket when the team were requiring 8 runs from 2.3 overs as he scored a critical 16 runs from 14 balls. Scotland tried to pull the game back but it was a tad too late as Smit scored the winning runs as Namibia upsetted Scotland. JJ Smit scored 32 runs in 23 balls which included 2 fours & 2 sixes which displayed his character.
Greaves & Watt both of the spin bowlers took 1 wicket each & gave away 22 runs; but in the context of the match the bowlers were required to take more wickets especially the wealth of fast bowling which Scotland possesses as they have got Bradley Wheal, Josh Davey & Safyaan Sharif who are with the team since more than 5 years . The only way Scotland would have won was by bowling out Namibia which couldn’t happen. Scotland is in a deep muddle as earlier in Super 12s they got hammered by Afghanistan by 130 runs. Scotland too are in their Maiden T20 World Cup but their performance is not reflecting their hard work & dedication; they were the table toppers of T20 World Cup Qualifiers as they defeated Bangladesh, PNG & Oman.
Ruben Trumpelmann the left arm fast bowler of Namibia broke the back of Scotland’s batting line up in the first over itself as he took 3 wickets & became the first bowler to achieve the fate in T20I. His angle of making the ball go away from left & right handed batsmen was a treat to watch. In the power-play overs Scotland managed to score 22 runs only as they lost 4 wickets. Matt Cross & Michael Leask the spin bowling all-rounder steadied the ship as they stitched a partnership of 39 runs in which Cross not only struggled but in frustration lost his stumps.
Greaves & Leask started making some in-roads as they were involved in 36 run partnership; but too much pre-meditation & courage dampened the road. Leask played a staggering knock of 44 runs in 27 balls which included 4 fours & 2 sixes while Chris Greaves wasn’t upto the mark as he scored 25 runs in 32 balls.
Namibia’s skipper Gerhard Erasmus & Coaching staff are using all the tricks in the book to overcome any opposition & they are overwhelming the opponent too. Namibia’s next match is against Afghanistan at Abu Dhabi which can sprung a lot of surprises as they have started playing proper brand of cricket which is: “If bowlers don’t win the match then batters have to win it & vice versa”.
Scotland’s NRR has taken a huge dip as of now it is -3.562. Scotland should forget about winning & losing because first of all they need to fight which is somewhat missing. Scotland’s next match is scheduled against New Zealand on 3rd of November at Dubai which is at some distance. Scotland now need to play for their pride as defeating any one of New Zealand, Pakistan & India will make Headlines.
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