India beat Namibia by 9 wickets in the Super-12 match of the ICC T20 World Cup at Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
Full scorecard here
India put Namibia under the pump to finish with three wins
By Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor
Dubai: Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul ensured there were no unwarranted stutter as India ended their unsuccessful campaign in the T20 World Cup on a high – winning their last Super-12 match against underdogs Namibia this evening.
Chasing 133 for a win after sending their opponents to bat, the two seasoned Indian openers got along with their job with a 86-run partnership for the first wicket. Once R. Trumpelmann, the left-arm seamer of Namibia, had Rohit dropped at short fine leg, there was no looking back for the Indian batsmen.
Rohit (56 off 37 balls) and Rahul (54 off 36 balls) helped themselves to two delightful half-centuries – this was being the Hitman’s second and the latter’s third in a row against Afghanistan, Scotland and now Namibia.
Earlier, despite being put under pressure by the quality spin duo of Ravi Ashwin (3/20) and Ravindra Jadeja (3/16), Namibia still managed to put a competitive total of 132 for the loss of eight wickets.
India win by 9 wickets
It's all over. India finish at 136/1 off 15.2 overs to beat Namibia by nine wickets. An emphatic performance as they didn't put a foot wrong in the last three games. However, it was too little too late, as they say.
50 for Rahul
A typical 50 from Rahul, easy on the eye - off 35 balls - and laced with some beautiful shots around the wicket. This one, incidentally, is his third in a row after failing in the first two games.
India need just six runs, off 33 balls, to end the chase and this forgettable campaign.
100 up for India
The 100-mark of Indian innings comes up in the 12th over. Rahul seems to be in no mood to miss his 50 too with some breathtaking shots as Surya keeps him company. 105/1 after 12 overs
OUT!
Rohit falls against the run of play against Frylinck soon after his half-century as he is caught behind. It's 86/1 in 10th over and SKY comes out for some time in the middle.
50 for Sharma
Rohit cruises to a 50, his second in the tournament, off 31 balls. It looks more of a batting practice for these duo - who are always a delight to watch.
7 overs - Ind 63/0 (Target 133)
Rohit Sharma - who remember was dropped on 0 - has now moved on to 45 off 27.
SIX!
Bernard Scholtz faces the wrath of Rohit soon after Namibia waste a review, largely due to their inexperience. It's difficult to stop this duo in such perfect batting conditions. India breeze to 54/0 after powerplay
SIX!
First one in Indian chase as Rohit relies on his gift of timing in picking up Wiese. Runs gradually begin to flow as the 'Hitman' completes 3,000 T20 runs for India.
1 over - Ind 6/0
An interesting first over by Namibian left-arm quick Trumpelmann, who sees Rohit being dropped at short fine leg. Rohit & KL Rahul move to 6/0 after one.
Mid-match summary: Namibia manage 132 despite losing way to Indian spinners
By Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor
Dubai: Underdogs Namibia, who lost their way against the quality spin duo of Ravi Ashwin (3/20) and Ravindra Jadeja (3/16), still managed to put a competitive total of 132 for the loss of eight wickets after being sent in to bat by India in the last Super-12 match of T20 World Cup here.
India, played with a full-strength team by only bringing in young leg spinner Rahul Chahar for his first game, struck in the fifth over after the rival openers Stuart Baard and M.van Lingen put up 33 runs on the board. Jadeja struck and wickets started to fall in regular intervals after that.
However, senior pro David Wiese chipped in with a resilient 26 at number six and some big blows from the last two batsmen – Frylinck and Trumpelmann took them past the 130-run mark. A total, which shouldn’t test the Indian batsmen in these conditions.
20 overs - Nam 132/8 - India need 133 to win
Namibia ended well to make up for the stutter in the middle.
SIX!
Trumpelmann shows some spunk as he lifts Shami over his head for the last over. Namibia had tried their best to be competitive as they finish at 132 for eight - a total which should not pose too many questions from Indian batters.
100 up for Namibia
Wiese wages a lone battle as Namibia cross the 100-run mark. Shami is back to finish things off but more than competitive edge in the match, the mood all around is to celebrate India's last outing here as a decent crowd of expat Indians have trickled in - despite this being a weekday.
OUT!
This time, Ashwin strikes as his delivery straightens up after pitching and bowls the left-handed Green through the gate. It's 94/7 and Namibia should try to bat their full quota of overs here. Ashwin also ends with three wickets as the batsmen have no clue against spinners of this quality.
OUT!
Namibia lose Smit to Jadeja who has been wreaking havoc on the smaller teams. The left-arm spinner finishes his quota on 3/16 as the rivals are 93/6 after 15 overs. Can they reach a 130-plus score from here to make a match of it?
OUT!
One spoke too soon as Erasmus tries to make room for a cut off Ashwin and is caught behind for 12. Namibia are 72/5 and and a below-par total is on the cards.
11 overs - Nam 62/4
The progress of Namibian innings depends a lot on the battle-hardened David Weise, who has come in at No.6. He has had a mini resurgence of his international career in this tournament as two of their best batsmen - he and captain Erasmus are out in the middle.
OUT!
The rot has begun as the Indian spinners prove to be quite a handful for the inexperienced Namibian batters. Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton falls to Ashwin as it's 47/4. They cross the 50-mark at the halfway stage.
OUT!
Jadeja strikes again with an arm ball to remove Baard, who was looking good at 21. Namibia are reduced to 39/3.
Chahar comes on for his first over in the tournament. Settles down after a few deliveries on the wrong line but Namibian skipper Erasmus is watchful against him and he goes for just one run.
OUT!
Namibia lose two quick wickets as a persistent Bumrah gets Van Lingen for 14 and then Williams falls to Jadeja. Suddenly they are 34/2.
India's next captain...
Virat Kohli, speaking to Ian Bishop after the toss, left enough clues that his obvious successor will be Rohit Sharma in this format. ''It's (the captaincy) has been an honour for me, I was given the opportunity and I tried to do my best. But it's also time to create some space and move forward. I've been immensely proud of how the team has played. Now I think it's time for the next lot to stake this team forward. Obviously Rohit is here and he's overlooking things for a while now,'' he said.
SIX!
Great shot from Baard and he walks into Shami and clobbers him over mid-wicket. The Namibians using the pace of the deliveries to gather the runs. A decent powerplay for them so far at 25/0 after 3 overs.
2 overs - Nam 15/0
Good to see India going in with a full team while young leg spinner Rahul Chahar gets his first game in place of Varun Chakravarthy. Namibian openers Baard and Lingen in no apparent discomfort against Shami, Bumrah as the latter hits Bumrah through the line for a four. 15/0 after 2 overs.
A watershed moment of sorts in Indian cricket but only a motely gathering here for the inconsequential game. It's formally the last day of Ravi Shastri-Virat Kohli combine - a mixed bag which saw them win back-to-back Test series in Australia and climb the peak as No.1 Test team. A major ICC trophy, however, remained elusive.
The Teams
India: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(c), Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant(wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Rahul Chahar, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.
Namibia: Stephan Baard, Michael van Lingen, Craig Williams, Gerhard Erasmus(c), David Wiese, JJ Smit, Zane Green(wk), Jan Frylinck, Nicol Loftie-Eaton, Ruben Trumpelmann, Bernard Scholtz.
India win toss, will field first
Welcome to live coverage of India vs Namibia from the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. India captain Virat Kohli won the toss and has decided to field first.
India take on Namibia in last Super-12 match of the tournament
By Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor
Dubai: India, out of reckoning for a semi-final berth, will want to go out on a high with a big win against minnows Namibia in the last Super-12 match of the ICC T20 World Cup here this evening.
Coming into the tournament as one of the hot favourites, Virat Kohli’s men floundered with two back-to-back defeats in their opening games against Pakistan and New Zealand, respectively. Any hopes that they may have nurtured in case of a possible upset win of Afghanistan over New Zealand on Sunday was scuttled by a clinical win by Kane Williamson’s men in Abu Dhabi.
As often the norm in such games, India may try to give some game-time to Ishan Kishan, who failed to make use of the break against New Zealand or Rahul Chahar, the young Indian leg spinner who didn’t get a single game.
Namibia, for whom former South African allrounder David Weise had a mini resuurection of his international career, will want to put their best foot forward in what had been a fascinating journey for the African nation through the qualifiers.
