NAM vs NED, Match 5 T20 World Cup: Netherlands hold nerves, beat Namibia by 5 wickets in last-over thriller

The Netherlands extended its winning streak in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2022 group stage with a five-wicket win against Namibia in a last-over thriller. Bas de Leede was instrumental in the Netherlands’ 5-wicket victory.

The Netherlands held their nerve and won both games to take the group lead. Max O’Dowd and Vikramjit Singh got the Netherlands off to a fantastic start in their pursuit of 122. The opening pair combined for 59 runs. Despite a brief collapse near the finish, Bas de Leede kept the ship afloat and led the Netherlands to victory with his unbeaten knock.

Namibian new ball bowlers did not perform as well as their competitors. Namibia clawed their way back into the game with quick wickets just as the Netherlands appeared to be running away with it. Namibia gave it their all but didn’t have enough runs in the bank for their bowlers to defend, and they will now need to win their next game to have a good chance of progressing to the next round.

“I think I could take a bit of experience from two days ago. We lost wickets at the end, we had to deal with it. We lost wickets at bad times,” Bas De Leede, who was named Player of the match, said in the post-match presentation ceremony.

For the second time in as many matches, Netherlands’ Bas de Leede is the @aramco Player of the Match #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/DHen5Dw2Yg

— T20 World Cup (@T20WorldCup) October 18, 2022

“We can’t afford to do that and we can learn from that as a team. The self-belief has always been there and it’s nice to win two tight games. Maybe it opens up a bit more freedom for the boys,” De Leede added.

The Netherlands has two victories, but they face Sri Lanka next. Sri Lanka’s remaining games are must-wins, whereas Namibia has an easier final game against the UAE.

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