T20 World Cup 2022: Namibia stuns Sri Lanka by 55 runs in opening clash

SOUTH GEELONG: Namibia, who are ranked 14th in the world, stunned the T20 Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka to register a 55-run victory in the opening game of the T20 World Cup 2022 here at Kadina Park.

Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bowl first, which Namibia took advantage of and posted 163 runs on the scoreboard before bowling Sri Lank out for 108 runs in 19 overs.

In pursuit of 163 runs, Sri Lanka's batting line-up collapsed as the Namibian bowling attack shined with the ball.

David Wiese, Bernard Scholtz, Ben Shikongo, and Jan Frylinck managed to bag two wickets each, while JJ Smit secured a scalp.

Skipper Dasun Shanaka was the top-scorer for Sri Lanka, scoring 29 runs in 23 balls before getting out to Frylinck.

Earlier, Smit and Frylinkc rescued Namibia to 163 runs.

Namibia fell to 35-3 and 93-6 before Jan Frylinck and JJ Smit hit 70 off the final 37 balls to haul them to an above-par 163-7.

Frylinck smashed 44 runs in 28 balls while Smit bagged 31 runs in only 16 balls. Stephen Baard also gathered 26 runs.

For Sri Lanka, Pramod Madhushan claimed two wickets, while Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Chamika Karunaratne, and Wanindu Hasaranga secured a scalp each.

Two top sides from each group will qualify for the Super 12s, which start on 22 October.

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