02:00 PM UTC: Scotland vs Namibia, Group 2, Super 12s, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup
In the battle of the Associates, Scotland will clash against Namibia. After a dream run in the first round, the Scottish men woke up to a nightmare in their first Super 12s game as the Afghanistan spin duo of Rashid Khan and Mujeeb ur Rahman destroyed the Scottish batting and the team skittled for a mere 60 runs, losing by 130 runs.
How will Scotland recover?
Scotland woke up to cruel reality after the hammering by the Afghani bowlers. However, they will now play a team that is also considered as one of the rather lightweights in the group. The team conceded 190 runs and after a 130 runs pounding, the team will have to regroup and think through the game. Mark Watt is yet to concede more than six runs per over and he will again be a huge weapon and it will be interesting to see how Josh Davey and Brad Wheal bounce back after the loss.
David Wiese: The trump card for Namibia
It isn’t a stretch to say that Namibians heavily depended upon former South African batter David Wiese to advance through and make it to this round. Against the Netherlands, Wiese played a knock of 66 runs off 40 balls, and then had a 14-ball 28 runs flurry against a testing Irish attack. He and JJ Smit both are game-changers while Namibia’s top order of Craig Williams and Zane Green also looked in decent touch during the last game. Skipper Gerhard Erasmus has been the glue batter in the middle and Namibians can take advantage of a pulverized attack.
Who has the edge?
Namibia will have the edge after a huge triumph over Ireland in the First Round. The bowling attack will rely on David Wiese(Again!) with his change-up deliveries that have shown purchase during the tournament so far. JJ Smit has been a viable spin option for the team too. While Jan Frylick can act as the wicket-taking bowler.
Meanwhile, Scotland will hope skipper Kyle Coetzer, middle-order batters Berrington and Cross put the last game aside and it isn’t like that the Namibians have bowlers like Rahman or Rashid. An interesting battle that can get close but Namibia surely will be the more confident of the two.