Zimbabwe beat Namibia in Kimberley on the back of a good all-round performance. The win ensured their place ahead of Namibia in the Super Six stage of the U19 Men’s CWC. [Namibia 146/8 (50 overs) v Zimbabwe 147/2 (35.3 overs) ]

Zimbabwe’s bowlers stepped up in the big game after they opted to bowl. Kohl Eksteen struck early on with the wicket of Johannes de Villiers, but Namibia made a cautious start to deny further wickets in the Powerplay.

Left-arm quick Newman Nyamhuri dented Namibia with two strikes in quick successions.

Zimbabwe needed a win to qualify, and Panashe Taruvinga did not take any risks on a surface that had thrown up some low-scoring games in the tournament.

Despite losing his opening partner Ryan Kamwemba early, Taruvinga’s cautious approach ensured that there was no slip-up. Brendon Sunguro offered solid company from the other end and the duo made a century stand to all but win the game for Zimbabwe.

Sunguro fell soon after for 29 but Taruvinga remained unbeaten on 49 as Zimbabwe completed the win with 17 overs and eight wickets to spare. They will head to the Super Six stage with Australia and Sri Lanka from Group C.

“I think the surface was really soft and I was using that to my advantage. I was hitting the deck hard and trying to impart more pace to my bowling. The coach asked me to use my pace to my advantage and I did it.”

[Sources ICC]