Abu Dhabi: Namibia beat Netherlands by six wickets to notch the first win of their ICC T20 World Cup campaign in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
Having restricted Netherlands to 164/4 in 20 overs, Namibia looked comfortable in their chase and sealed their win with six wickets and six balls to spare. With the win, Namibia have kept alive their hopes of making it to the Super 12 phase.
Earlier, the Dutch were rocked by Ireland’s Curtis Campher, who picked up 4 wickets in 4 balls to derail the batting effort in their previous match. Namibia, on the other hand, were outclassed by Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, England are considering dropping Dawid Malan, the world No 1 T20 batsman, for Saturday’s World Cup opener against the West Indies as concerns grow about his form and suitability to conditions in the UAE.
Malan has an outstanding record for England in T20 cricket, averaging 43.2, with a strike rate of 139, from 30 matches. But there is a growing feeling that his style of play – typically taking 10 or 15 balls to play himself in before accelerating – is ill-suited to the challenge at this tournament.
In England’s second warm-up game against New Zealand on Wednesday, he scored only 11 off 15 balls in the total of 163-6, which set up a 13-run victory. Malan scored 18 off 18 balls in England’s first warm-up, the defeat to India, once again far below the scoring rate the rest of the team managed.
Moeen Ali’s fine recent form in the IPL, when he won the tournament with Chennai Super Kings, has also endangered Malan’s place. Moeen scored an undefeated 43 off only 20 balls against India in Monday’s warm-up game and now demands inclusion in the side.
If Malan were to be dropped, Moeen is the likeliest option to bat at number three.