• Source:PTI
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Namibia beat South Africa: Namibia scripted history as they defeated South Africa by 4 wickets in the one-off T20I match at the Wanderers Cricket Ground in Windhoek on Saturday, October 11. Namibia needed 11 runs in the final over, and Zane Green smashed a boundary off Andile Simelane to pull off the famous win for his side.

South Africa is the fourth full-member nation that Namibia has defeated in T20Is, after Ireland, Zimbabwe, and Sri Lanka. However, this is the first time the Proteas have lost to an associate nation in T20Is.

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Playing their first international match on home turf, at the Namibia Cricket Ground, they restricted the Proteas to 134 for eight in their 20 overs after being put into bowl first. A few of the South African batters got starts but none of them managed to convert it into a big one. Jason Smith was the top run-getter for them with a 31-run contribution whereas Lhuan-dre Pretorius scored 22 runs.

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On the other hand, Ruben Trumpelmann was the pick of the bowlers for the hosts as he finished with three wickets to his name for 28 runs in his four overs.

The hosts then earned a hard-fought victory on the last ball of their innings, which was followed by a lap of honour. Zane Green produced a heroic effort, having played an unbeaten and match-winning knock of 30 runs in just 23 balls on the back of two fours and a six. Trumpelmann made a crucial contribution with the bat as well as he remained unbeaten at the other end with 11 runs to his name. 

Namibia, an ICC Association member, had never played an international match against South Africa in any format prior to this T20I. Having found a massive motivation after their dream of owning a cricketing facility in their home country came true earlier on Saturday, they ended up beating a second-string Proteas side led by Donovan Ferreira.

The main South African side, led by Aiden Markram, is currently in Pakistan for a two-Test series, which will be followed by six white-ball games.

"Obviously you can see what it means for the team. If you look into the crowd spaces, you can see what it means for them. And that’s what’s special about, I think, any national team playing in front of their own people - it’s how you inspire the next generation to play, and how you inspire the community upwards, I guess. I think the guys did it with good skill. I’m proud of them, that’s so good," Namibia skipper Gerhard Erasmus said at the post-match presentation.