Namibia’s dream of qualifying for the Super 12 of the 2022 Twenty-20 (T20) World Cup ended when they lost by seven runs to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Geelong, Australia on Thursday.

The UAE won the toss and elected to bat first, setting a competitive score of 148 runs for the loss of three wickets (148/3) in their 20 overs.

Namibia’s run chase started badly as they lost three crucial wickets in the power play (34/3) before slipping further back to 85/7 in the middle overs to end the match with 141/8, seven runs short of victory.

Ruben Trumpelmann and David Wiese attempted to salvage the game for the Eagles by teaming up for a record tournament partnership of 70 in seven overs in the eight-wicket partnership.

Namibia kicked off the tournament with a morale-boosting victory over Sri Lanka before falling to the Netherlands, leaving them with the tough task of winning their last match against the UAE in the last group game.

Wiese was Namibia’s top run scorer with 55 off 38 balls, while Trumpelmann added 25 from 24 runs.

It was the UAE’s first-ever win at the T20 World Cup Finals Competition, while Namibia was hoping to qualify for the Super 12 stage for the second consecutive World Cup.

Speaking after the tournament, Gerhard Erasmus said the team played well in patches especially, restricting them to less than 150 runs when they batted.

“I guess that’s what tournament cricket means because the momentum swings at any given time. After that high of the first game, the momentum swung against us. We did not play enough to get through to the next round,” he said.

Sri Lanka tops the group ahead of the Netherlands as the two teams who qualify for the Super 12 stage of the competition, while the Eagles and UAE exit the tournament.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency