England face Namibia in their last group stage match of the 2024 T20 World Cup on June 15. England’s chances of making it to the next round is hanging by a thread, with the defending champions staying alive with a rather bizarre victory over Oman in their last game. Oman were all out for just 47 runs and England chased the target down in just 3.1 overs to win the match by eight wickets. But even a win against Namibia won’t be enough for England to confirm a spot in the Super 8. That will happen only if Australia beat Scotland the next day. Namibia had started their campaign with a win over Oman in the Super Over. They then lost to Scotland by five wickets and then folded for 72 in their last match against Australia, losing by nine wickets.
Likely Playing XIs
Both England and Namibia are unlikely to make any changes to the sides that played in their respective previous games.
England likely XI
Batters – Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook
All-Rounders – Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali
Wicketkeeper – Jos Buttler
Bowlers – Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley
Namibia likely XI
Batters – Michael van Lingen, Nikolaas Davin, Jan Frylinck
All-Rounders – Gerhard Erasmus, David Wiese, JJ Smit
Wicketkeeper – Zane Green
Bowlers – Ruben Trumpelmann, Bernard Scholtz, Jack Brassel, Ben Shikongo
Last 5 matches
England – WL-WW
Namibia – LLWWW
Player Statistics (England)
1. Jos Buttler
The England captain has looked quite in this tournament, continuing on the form that he had hit during the 2024 IPL playing for the Rajasthan Royals and in the T20I series against Pakistan. Buttler smashed 42 in 28 balls against Australia, with him falling to Adam Zampa in the 10th over being one of the big turning points in the game that his side eventually lost. He then plundered 24 runs in eight balls during England’s romp against Oman.
2. Jofra Archer
Jofra Archer started and ended the procession during the Oman innings. He was also pretty impressive against Australia, recording figures of 1/28 on a day when Australia scored 201/7. Archer is clearly still working his way back to bowling full cry in red ball cricket and is yet to hit those blinding speeds but he remains a potent weapon for England, particularly against an inexperienced side such as Namibia.
Players who can make a Difference (England)
1. Phil Salt
Like Buttler, Salt has also maintained the good form that he had hit during the IPL. He scored 37 in 23 balls against Australia before falling to Zampa in the eighth over. Against Oman, Salt was all guns and blazes, smashing two sixes in three balls and falling to Bilal Khan. Salt and Buttler’s opening stand is one that can pretty much take the game away from the opposition.
2. Adil Rashid
While Archer started and ended the Oman procession, Rashid was the one who orchestrated it. He finished the match with incredible figures of 4/11 and his leg breaks could prove to be just as unplayable for Namibia.
Player Statistics (Namibia)
1. Gerhard Erasmus
The Namibia captain has been his side’s best player by some distance. Erasmus scored a half-century and took two wickets in Namibia’s loss to Scotland and then scored 36 of the 72 runs that they scored against Australia. Namibia’s chances of making it to the next round are done and dusted but their captain would surely be looking to go out on a high.
2. David Wiese
David Wiese is a former South Africa international and a key all-rounder in the Namibian XI. He is a hard-hitting middle-order batter and an experienced right-arm fast-medium pace bowler. Wiese has scored 582 runs in 51 matches at a strike rate of 127.6 while also picking 57 wickets at an economy rate of 7.16.
Players who can make a Difference (Namibia)
1. Ruben Trumpelmann
Ruben Trumpelmann is a left-arm fast bowler who returned with four wickets against Oman in Namibia’s opening encounter in the tournament. Trumpelmann extracts extra bounce courtesy his height and has bagged 29 wickets in 25 appearances for Namibia in T20s at an average of 21.1 and economy of 7.4. He can be lethal on helpful pitches in the Caribbean and America.
2. Jan Frylinck
Jan Frylinck scored a fluent 45 off 48 deliveries against Oman and is also a more than useful left-arm seamer. He has scored 665 runs in 58 matches at a strike rate of 108 while also bagging 63 wickets at a bowling strike rate of 15.2.
Team Head-to-head
England and Namibia have never played a T20I against each other.
Venue and Pitch
The Vivian Richards Stadium will play host to this game. Both teams have played one match each in North Sound, with rather contrasting results. Namibia were blown off for 72 runs by Australia who went on to win by nine wickets in 5.4 overs. England smashed Oman away for 47 runs and went on to win by eight wickets in 3.1 overs. The third match to be played here was between Oman and Scotland. Scotland won that match by seven wickets.
Match Prediction
England are the heavy favourites to win this match. Apart from the fact that they are just a much stronger and more experienced side than Namibia, the defending champions also have the desperation of their campaign hanging by a thread, which will snap if they somehow lose this one. There is potential for yet another wipe out similar to what England did to Oman or Australia did to Namibia.
Credit: Source link