New Zealand recorded their third win in the tournament, this time against Namibia, by 52 runs. They now have six points, and a win in their last match against Afghanistan will guarantee them a semi-final spot.
New Zealand did not start well on a slow Sharjah pitch, crawling to 96/4 after 16 overs. But they did well from there to reach 163. Namibia tried their best but could not compete eventually losing the match by 52 runs.
Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus won the toss and decided to bowl. They made two changes, bringing in Karl Birkenstock and Bernard Scholtz. New Zealand went with the same XI from their win against Scotland.
Martin Guptill again started aggressively, and New Zealand raced to 30 in the first four overs. But the introduction of David Wiese resulted in Guptill mistiming the first ball of the fifth over, caught by Ruben Trumpelmann for 18. None of the New Zealand top-order batters capitalised on their starts. Daryl Mitchell got 19, Kane Williamson 28, and Devon Conway 17, none of them at great pace.
Namibia bowled well at that stage, with Erasmus (1-22) leading the way. However, it all changed in the last four overs, as Glenn Phillips (39* in 21 balls) and Jimmy Neesham (35* in 23) added 67 in the last four overs.
The Namibia openers, Stephan Baard and Michael van Lingen, started well as New Zealand remained wicketless in the Powerplay. They added 47 before van Lingen was bowled by Neesham for 25. That was their biggest partnership as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals, and the spinners, Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi, controlled the middle overs.
Tim Southee returned to dismiss Zane Green and Wiese to finish with 2-15. Trent Boult, too, got two wickets in the 19th over to finish with 2-20.
The 52-run win provided a solid net run rate boost to New Zealand. Neesham was named Player of the Match.
Brief scores: New Zealand 163/4 in 20 overs (Glenn Phillips 39*; Bernard Scholtz 1-15) beat Namibia 111/7 in 20 overs (Michael van Lingen 25; Tim Southee 2-15) by 52 runs. Player of the Match: Jimmy Neesham.