2 runs and 2 deliveries were the difference between USA’s jubilation’s and Namibia’s heartbreak as the host’s give away a well positioned match situation to lose by the smallest of margins in the 2nd round of group stage matches in Windhoek.
Jubilant scenes of celebration from #TeamUSA🇺🇸 after an extraordinary 2 run win over hosts, Namibia in #WCL2 pic.twitter.com/g7hV3bFZXv
— USA Cricket (@usacricket) April 21, 2019
Aaron Jones smashed an unbeaten century knock of 103 runs and in the company of Steven Taylor (44) and Hayden Walsh Jr (57), helped USA to 250/7 in their allotted 50 overs, the 4th wicket partnership of 127 runs between Jones and Walsh being the backbone of USA’s innings. JJ Smit claimed a 5-fer for himself as he was the standout performer for Namibia with the ball, with Bernard Scholtz once again bowling shrewdly to give away only 26 runs off his quota of 10 overs.
Namibia were well placed for most of the duration of their innings with captain Gerhard Erasmus (92) and Jean Bredenkamp (55) forging a 149 runs partnership for the 3rd wicket, until USA captain Saurabh Neteavalkar (3/50) accounted for both. The host’s were still very much in the driver’s seat with 18 required off the final 4/5 overs with 5 wickets in hand, when Ali Khan pressed the kill switch.
A 3-wicket penultimate over by Khan had Namibia reeling for breath as they had only the final pair remaining, still needing 7 runs off 6 deliveries. Karl Birkenstock and number 11 Zhivago Groenewald took 4 runs off the first 3 deliveries off Netravalkar before a rush of blood saw Groenewald get run-out in the 4th delivery to hand USA a win from nowhere till the final few overs of Namibia’s innings.
Brief Scores:
USA 250/7 in 50 overs (Aaron Jones 103 n.o, Hayden Walsh Jr 57, Steven Taylor 44, JJ Smit 5/63) beat Namibia 248 all out in 49.4 overs (Gerhard Erasmus 92, Jean Bredenkamp 55, Christi Viljoen 30, Ali Khan 5/46, Saurabh Netravalkar 3/50) by 2 runs
