AP, Sharjah :
Namibia reached the main draw of the T20 World Cup for the first time by beating Ireland by eight wickets on Friday and becoming the final team to qualify for the Super 12s.
Set a target of 126 to win, Namibia got there win with nine balls to spare mainly thanks to 53 not out off 49 balls by captain Gerhard Erasmus, who shared an unbeaten 53-run partnership with David Wiese (28).
The Namibians previously beat the Netherlands in Group A of qualifying for the country’s first win at a World Cup and went a step further by taking down an opponent seven places higher than them in the ICC rankings.
They will join Sri Lanka in qualifying from the group.
Ireland, looking to qualify for the main draw of the T20 World Cup for the first time since 2012, won the toss and was 55-0 after six overs at the end of the powerplay.
The team failed to build on its strong start and the runs stopped flowing on a slow pitch after Paul Stirling was out for a 24-ball 38. The Irish finished on 125-8, having been 62-0 after 7.1 overs.
Brief score: Ireland 125-8 (20 overs): Stirling 38 (24), O’Brien 25 (24), Frylinck 3-21;
Namibia 126-2 (18.3 overs): Erasmus 53* (49).
Namibia won by eight wickets.
