Namibia suffered their first defeat at the Cricket U19 Africa Championship when Kenya beat them by four wickets in Dar es Salaam on Thursday.
The result was of little importance, as Namibia had already qualified for the 2016 U19 World Cup in Bangladesh, but with Kenya and Uganda fighting it out for second place, Kenya provided tough opposition for Namibia.
In a low-scoring encounter, Namibia were all out for 100 runs, while Kenya reached the winning target for the loss of six wickets and with nine overs to spare.
Namibia batted first but struggled to get amongst the runs, while Kenya’s bowlers maintained the pressure with regular wickets.
Lohan Lauwrens (1), SJ Lofty-Eaton (2) and Nico Davin (5) all went cheaply, but Zane Green with 30 and Mias Strauss, who top scored with 33 runs, kept Namibia’s run chase going.
They were however the only batsmen to reach double figures and once they departed, the lower order soon followed as Namibia were all out for 100 runs off only 39 overs.
In Kenya’s innings, Namibia’s bowlers kept up the pressure and runs were hard to come by.
Francois Rautenbach and Tiaan Steenkamp got the first two wickets to reduce Kenya to 30 for two, but Kenya recovered to take the score to 47 runs by the 18th over.
Tiaan Steenkamp made a breakthrough by dismissing three batsmen in quick succession as Kenya slumped to 54 for five wickets, but a 27-run sixth wicket partnership saw Kenya closing in on the victory target.
They eventually reached the winning target with four wickets and nine overs in hand.
Tiaan Steenkamp was Namibia’s best bowler, taking three wickets for 19 runs in 10 overs.
