Namibia beat Netherlands in second group match
Published at 20 October, 2021The Netherlands failed to win the second game in the group stage of the T20 World Cup. Mainly thanks to Max O'Dowd (70), who was in great shape, the Netherlands set a decent score (164), but all-rounder David Wiese struck the Dutch attack from all angles and stayed in with 66 not out in only 40 balls.
After winning the toss, Namibia sent the Netherlands in to bat. Myburgh was in, instead of Cooper and Van der Gugten took Brandon Glover's place. Through a beautiful cover drive, opener Myburgh gave a glimpse of his class before falling victim to a slow bouncer from Jan Frylinck – a weapon that Namibia used a lot and with success.
Van der Merwe came in at 3. Not a bad idea, as he has played some memorable innings for his county. However, he also hit a slow bouncer in the hands of a fielder.
Ackermann (37) and O'Dowd (70 out of 56) built a partnership of 82 runs for the third wicket. Ackermann couldn't find the boundary and was visibly frustrated with his own efforts. That was a credit to Namibia's bowling and field placing.
O'Dowd, who scored his second straight 50 of the tournament in the fourteenth over, batted great but was visibly fatigued in the 38 degree heat. He eventually went on to run out for a monumental 70.
Keeper Scott Edwards (21 from 11 balls) played a gem of an innings, with a 6, a cover drive and a ramp shot for four. 164/4 was the final result – that seemed defendable, looking at the much-praised attack of the Netherlands.
From the start, however, Namibia showed that it would go for the win. Lefthander Green immediately took on offspinner Ackermann, until he was played on by Klaassen. Ackermann bowled veteran Craig Williams, who was clearly unimpressed with his own shot choice.
Then it all collapsed. The Dutch bowlers gave the batsmen way too much space. 36-year old David Wiese played a fantastic innings. The required run rate was around 8.5 runs per over when Wiese successively tackled Van der Merwe, Ackermann and Bas de Leede with aggressive batting.
Namibia was now ahead of the run rate and did not relinquish this lead. Fred Klaassen (1-14 in 4) and Pieter Seelaar (1-8 in 2) survived, with commentator O'Brien wondering aloud why captain Seelaar only gave himself two overs.
On Friday, October 22, at 16:00 PM, the Netherlands will play Sri Lanka.
Header photo: (C) ICC
