Namibia brushed past Tanzania by 63 runs in Harare on Thursday, sealing their place at the 2026 men’s T20 World Cup and keeping an admirable record of qualifying from the African pathway intact.
Asked to bat first, Namibia stumbled to 35 for 4 inside the powerplay. Jan Frylinck miscued to mid-off, Malan Kruger dragged on, and Tanzanian left-armer Yalinde Kimote sniffed a mini-collapse. At that point captain Gerhard Erasmus simply walked down the pitch, exchanged a quiet word with JJ Smit, and the pair never looked back.
“We told each other, ‘A partnership of 50 puts us right in it; a partnership of 100 wins it,’” Erasmus revealed later. “It wasn’t about doing anything flashy, just batting time and taking the boundary options when they came.”
They did exactly that. Erasmus’s 55 from 41 balls contained six crisp fours, while Smit’s unbeaten 61 from 43 featured one four and four meaty sixes, two of them disappearing over the sight-screen. Their 106-run stand lifted Namibia to 174 for 6, a total that always felt 15-20 above par on a surface showing variable bounce.
Tanzania’s chase never generated momentum. Smit struck twice in two balls in his first over, pinning Arun Yadav in front and then having Dhrumit Mehta caught at slip. “JJ just seems to do this when it matters,” Namibia coach Pierre de Bruyn said. “His calmness rubs off on everyone.” Ben Shikongo (3 for 21) found sharp lift to account for the middle order, and Smit returned to remove Mukesh Suthar, finishing with 3 for 16. Only Ivan Patwa, with a resourceful 31, hinted at a contest as Tanzania closed on 111 for 8.
Tanzanian skipper Kassim Nassoro was honest in defeat. “We were outplayed, particularly in the middle overs. Still, getting to this stage shows we’re improving,” he said.
Namibia’s victory confirms a fourth consecutive T20 World Cup appearance after outings in 2021, 2022 and 2024. South Africa have already qualified automatically, while the winner of Thursday’s later semi-final between Zimbabwe and Kenya will take Africa’s second regional berth.
“The job’s not finished; we want the regional title as well,” Smit added, before admitting he might allow himself “one cold drink” to celebrate. It felt deserved.
