Namibia pulled off a historic win against South Africa by hitting a four off the very last ball. Chasing 11 runs in the final over, Zane Green struck a six off the first ball. But as only 4 more runs came from the next 4 deliveries, the match went down to the last ball. Green hit Andile Simelane’s sixth delivery of the over through midwicket, sparking celebrations not only for himself but for the entire Namibian side.
It was the first-ever match at Namibia Cricket Board’s own stadium, against none other than South Africa—and the thrilling finish ended with Namibia’s victory. South Africa had posted 134/8, but Namibia chased it down with 4 wickets in hand. Namibia, along with South Africa and Zimbabwe, will co-host the 2027 ODI World Cup, and as part of the preparations, the new Namibia Cricket Ground (NCG) in Windhoek was inaugurated today.
Until now, Namibia had played in privately-owned grounds. For their first match at their own stadium, they invited South Africa for a one-off T20I. With South Africa’s main team busy in a Test series in Pakistan, they sent a squad led by Donovan Ferreira, who has played only 7 T20Is. This match also marked the international comeback of Quinton de Kock after retirement, which drew attention from Protea fans. But his return was short-lived—he was dismissed for just 1 run off 4 balls at the end of the opening over.
After that, South Africa’s relatively inexperienced batting lineup struggled. Debutant Jason Smith top-scored with 31, while Rubin Hermann made 23 and Luan-dré Pretorius 22. Experienced batter Reeza Hendricks managed only 7, and skipper Ferreira scored 4. For Namibia, Ruben Trumpelmann starred with 3 wickets for 28 runs.
In the chase, Namibia lost two wickets for 28 but stayed composed. Five middle-order batters reached double figures, with Zane Green playing a match-winning unbeaten knock of 30 off 23 balls, including the last-ball four that sealed the famous victory. Trumpelmann remained unbeaten on 11 alongside him, while skipper Gerhard Erasmus added 21.
Scores:
South Africa: 134/8 in 20 overs (Smith 31, Hermann 23, Pretorius 22; Trumpelmann 3/28).
Namibia: 138/6 in 20 overs (Green 30*, Erasmus 21, Kruger 18; Burger 2/21).
Result: Namibia won by 4 wickets.
Player of the Match: Ruben Trumpelmann.
