A place in the Super 12 will be at stake when Ireland and Namibia square off against each other at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on 22 October. The losing side will join the Netherlands to bid adieu to the tournament.
Ireland first beat the Netherlands. They then had Sri Lanka under the pump after reducing them to 8/3, but eventually relinquished the early advantage. In the end Sri Lanka won comfortably.
The decision to start the attack with Paul Stirling has worked on both occasions for them. He affected a run out in the opening game, and then dismissed Kusal Perera in the next.
But other than that, the spin attack has largely been ineffective. Ben White, who replaced Craig Young in the second match, went wicketless, while Simi Singh has been their most expensive bowler. The pacers, in contrast, have fired on all fronts. Curtis Campher, Mark Adair and Josh Little have shared 14 wickets from the first two games.
Their batters were untested against the Netherlands, but succumbed to an impressive Sri Lankan attack. Despite that, they are unlikely to make any tweaks in the batting order.
Namibia, on the other hand, will expect a lot from their top order. The opening duo of Stephan Baard and Zane Green added 10 and 34 in the first two games, and need to get Namibia off a decent start. The middle order, comprising David Wiese, Gerhard Erasmus and J.J. Smit, exudes confidence. Wiese's half-century propelled them to a six-wicket win against the Netherlands. Smit can shift through gears, and will be an important player in death overs.
Probable XIs
Namibia: Stephan Baard, Zane Green (wk), Craig Williams, Gerhard Erasmus (c), David Wiese, J.J. Smit, Michael van Lingen, Jan Frylinck, Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, Ruben Trumpelmann, Bernard Scholtz
Ireland: Paul Stirling, Kevin O'Brien, Andrew Balbirnie (c), Gareth Delany, Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, Neil Rock (wk), Simi Singh, Mark Adair, Benjamin White, Joshua Little
Fantasy Tips
- Among wicketkeepers, prefer Green over Rock as the former opens batting, and is likelier to score bigger.
- From Namibia, Erasmus and Williams should be your two batters.
- Wiese and Campher are must-have all-rounders for your fantasy XI.
Blitzpools Fantasy Tip
Neil Rock, Paul Stirling, Gareth Delany, Andrew Balbirnie, Craig Williams, Stephan Baard, Curtis Campher (c), David Wiese, Mark Adair (v), Bernard Scholtz, Craig Young