Kenyans fall to Namibia in T20 World Cup qualifiers

Kenya’s hopes of qualifying for the 2020 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup suffered a major blow yesterday as they suffered their third defeat.

The Kenyan men had a bad day in office, losing by 87 runs to Namibia in their fifth match of the ongoing global qualifiers in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The Kenyans failed in both bowling and batting, gifting the Namibians their third win and a chance to advance to the play-offs.

Fielding first, the Kenyans allowed their opponents to score an unassailable 181 runs for five, the highest they have conceded in the tournament.

The Kenyans fumbled in the chase and were bowled out for 94 in 18.5 overs. Rakep Patel top-scored for Kenya with 30 runs off 28 balls, Aman Gandhi 22 (27) and Nelson Odhiambo 10 (12) were the only Kenyans who scored double figures.

Poor bowling in the second and fifth wicket stand proved costly as Kenyans were unable to reach the 182 target set for them. Bernard Scholtz starred for Namibia with the ball taking four wickets for 12, while Jonathan Smit took three for 19.

Opening batsman Stephen Baard and Zane Green of the middle order hit a half-tonne each to anchor Namibia to their third win.

Baard was too smart for the Kenyan bowlers as they tried to dismiss him in vain. Skipper Shem Ngoche gave Kenya a good start when he set up Niko Davin 5 (6) to be caught by Odhiambo with the ninth ball of the innings.

Baard partnered with Jean-Pierre Kotze for a solid second wicket stand, resulting in 53 runs before Sachin Bhudia bowled Kotze in the 11th over with the score at 79 for the loss of two.

Gandhi cut short Zane Green’s stint on the crease, running him out to put Namibia’s score at 84 for three in 11.3 overs.