Trumpelmann, Green guide Namibia to historic win over South Africa
Windhoek (Namibia): Namibia pulled off a thrilling four-wicket win over South Africa in the one-off T20I on Saturday, sealing victory off the final delivery of the match played in Windhoek on Saturday. The result marked South Africa’s second T20I loss to an Associate nation, after their defeat to the Netherlands at the 2022 T20 World Cup.
Chasing 135 for victory, Namibia relied on Zane Green’s unbeaten 30 off 23 balls and Ruben Trumpelmann’s all-round brilliance (3-28 and 8-ball 11 not out). With 11 runs required off the final over, Green swung the momentum with a six off the first ball from Andile Simelane. The pacer recovered to bowl four tight deliveries, but a low full toss off the last ball was whipped away by Green to seal the win.
Earlier, South Africa opted to bat and lost Quinton de Kock and Reeza Hendricks cheaply. On a tricky surface, Lhua-dre Pretorius and Rubin Hermann added 30 runs before Trumpelmann struck again, aided by a fine catch at deep square leg. Regular wickets pegged South Africa back, reducing them to 68 for 5 in the 11th over.
Jason Smith provided some late resistance, but boundaries were hard to come by on a surface offering grip and bounce. Contributions from Bjorn Fortuin and Gerald Coetzee lifted the total past 130; South Africa eventually finished on 134 for 8.
Namibia’s chase started steadily despite early wickets. South Africa’s pacers, especially Coetzee, struggled for consistency, leaving the field four balls into his second over. By the seventh over, Namibia had 51 runs on the board despite losing three wickets.
Captain Gerhard Erasmus, JJ Smit, and Jason Kruger steadied the innings through the middle overs, ensuring Namibia stayed within reach. When 28 were needed from the last three overs, Green and Trumpelmann kept calm, finding boundaries at crucial moments before completing a famous win off the final ball.
Trumpelmann was named Player of the Match for his decisive all-round performance that sealed a historic result for Namibia.
Brief scores:
South Africa 134/8 in 20 overs (Jason Smith 31, Rubin Hermann 23; Ruben Trumpelmann 3-23, Max Heingo 2-32) lost to Namibia 138/6 in 20 overs (Zane Green 30 not out, Gerhard Erasmus 21; Nandre Burger 2-21, Andile Simelane 2-28) by four wickets.