All-round show secures India monumental win against Namibia in T20 World Cup 2026

Team India cruised to their second win in the ICC T20 World Cup to bolster their position at the top of the points table in Group A. They blew apart Namibia with consummate ease, crafting a monumental win by 93 runs to register a superlative NRR of +3.050.

The Men in Blue called the shots throughout the game, barring a brief period of lull that spanned from the end of the Indian innings to the beginning of the Namibian chase.

Winning the toss, Namibia opted to bowl first. India made two changes to the side from their last game,  with Jasprit Bumrah replacing Mohammed Siraj while Sanju Samson stepped in place of Abhishek Sharma, who missed the game due to illness. Put to bat, India started their innings in the fifth gear with Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson hunkering down to some early power-hitting.

The opening pair posted 25 runs with Samson smashing 22 off just eight balls before Ben Shikongo could deliver the first breakthrough for the visitors. However, the Men in Blue regained their composure with Ishan Kishan hitting his stride again, while he was complemented well by Tilak Varma at the other end.

Kishan smashed 61 off just 24 balls, scoring at a staggering rate of 254.17, clobbering six fours and five sixes. India entered into an unexpected wobble where they lost a flurry of wickets in the middle to allow Namibia to claw their way back in. Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav (12) fell in quick succession, leaving India stuttering at 124/4.

Effacing fears of another slide in the tournament, Hardik Pandya emerged as the saviour while Shivam Dube was happy to throw anchor. The partnership added 81 runs for the fifth wicket from just 39 balls to propel India across the 200-run-mark after things came to a standstill as an aftershock of the sudden fall of wickets.

Pandya hammered 52 off 28 balls, smashing four fours and four sixes while Dube scored 23 off 16. A late collapse saw India garnering just four runs in the last 11 balls but they were well placed at 209/9 from 20 overs. Gerhard Erasmus registered figures of 4/20 from his allotment of four overs.

Chasing a big number on the board, Namibia shot to a fiery start led by Louren Steenkamp (29) and Jan Frylinck (22). The duo put up 34 runs for the opening partnership before Arshdeep Singh could apply the brakes. Steenkamp, joined by Nicol Loftie-Eaton (13), continued the charge for Namibia and the two actually motored along, before India could finally get the big guns out.

Varun Chakravarthy unleashed the spinning juggernaut to raze through the Namibian defences, claiming the scalps of Steenkamp, Loftie-Eaton and JJ Smit (0). The visitors had further misery piled onto them, completely losing the plot in the center as Gerhard Erasmus (18) and Malan Kruger (5) also followed the footprints of the top-order to reduce Namibia to 94/6. From thereon, it was a matter of moments before India could finally roll over their counterparts, bundling them out for 116.

Varun Chakravarthy was the pick of the lot with figures of 2-0-7-3 while he had support from Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel as the duo claimed four wickets between them. India secured the bragging rights of the game by a staggering 93 runs, with Hardik Pandya named the Player of the Match for his all-round performance.