A dominant performance by Afghanistan enabled them to beat Namibia by 62 runs in Group 2 of the ICC Men’s Twenty/20 Cricket World Cup at Abu Dhabi yesterday. The win boosted their semi-final hopes.
Chasing 161 after Afghanistan’s imposing effort, Namibia could manage only 98-9 off their 20 overs.
Opener, Craig Williams’ departure in the first over set the tone for the rest of the innings as Namibia failed to gain any momentum.
Fast bowler, Hamid Hassan, playing his first international Twenty/20 for Afghanistan since 2016, took 3-9 and medium pacer, Naveen-ul-Haq had 3-26.
Afghanistan, bouncing back from their defeat by Pakistan, proved again why they are seen as a dangerous team in Group 2 of the World Cup.
Opening batsmen, Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Shahzad added 53 for the first wicket before captain, Mohammad Nabi (32 not out from 17 balls), and Asghar Afghan (31 from 23), emotional in his last international match, added useful lower-order runs.
The victory keeps Afghanistan second in the table behind Pakistan, but having played more games than India and New Zealand.
The final scores: Afghanistan 160-5 off 20 overs, Namibia 98-9 off 20 overs.
