Zimbabwe hand Namibia second defeat at Pent Series

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Namibia’s senior national netball team, the Desert Jewels found the going tough when they lost their second match at the Debmarine Namibia Pent Series 38-57 against Zimbabwe on Thursday here.

The Namibian team who had the same points as Zimbabwe on the log standing hoped for a better game against an opponent they once defeated in 2018 when they lifted the trophy.

But the Zimbabwean team had a better game plan as they surprised their opponents with their fast-paced game.

The Debmarine Desert Jewels won the bet to centre but failed to capitalise on the opportunity as Zimbabwe took advantage of the turnover to score the first point of the match.

When Zimbabwe took the lead, Namibia found the going tough as they trailed the game which Zimbabwe dominated to end the first quarter with an eight points lead at 7-15.

Zimbabwe continued with their dominance showing more agency and hunger for the game and scoring seven points before Namibia found their first point of that quarter.

In the second quarter Namibia missed most of their baskets and failed to close down their opponents but as the quarter reached an end they dusted themselves off and made their turnovers count for a score of 20-30.

In the third quarter Zimbabwe capitalised on all their turnovers dominating the game and extending their lead to 17 points within seven minutes into that quarter while Namibia were restricted to only two points at that point of the match.

Namibia only scored six goals in this quarter compared to their opponents’ 16 to get to 26-46.

The fourth quarter saw Namibian players tiring while their opponents were still the energetic and fast playing team. Zimbabwe goal shooter Lynette Tanhira made no mistake scoring at every opportunity that was availed to her.

The final score was 38-57 for Zimbabwe.

In an interview with the media after the match Namibian coach Julene Meyer said she was disappointed by their game.

“We set high standards for ourselves but we could not convert our opportunities. This is another learning curve for us in a game which was physical,” said Meyer who added that they are aware of their problems which need fixing.

Zimbabwe coach Lloyd Makunde said he had a better game plan because Namibia thought they were going to play a slow game but they outran them until they got tired.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency