New Delhi, Feb 12 (IANS) Blistering half-centuries by Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya took India to 209/9 in their 20 overs in the Group A clash of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Thursday, despite Namibia skipper Gerhard Erasmus claiming career-best figures of 4-20.

Kishan blazed his way to 61 off 24 balls while Pandya contributed 52 off 28 balls, but Erasmus used his unorthodox slingy deliveries to restrict the damage done by the Indian batting line-up on a pitch which gripped a little for the spinners. India raced to 104/1 in just seven overs, with Kishan particularly brutal against the pace bowlers before falling to the first ball of spin from Erasmus.

He and Bernard Scholtz created a stranglehold through the middle overs. Though Pandya fought back with a late fifty, India lost five wickets in the last two overs, and Namibia will be satisfied with pulling things back from a position where India threatened to post a much larger total.

India’s innings began with Ruben Trumpelmann testing Kishan with bounce and seam. Sanju Samson, however, stamped his authority early, launching the final ball of the first over straight over the sightscreen for six. The real fireworks came in the second over as Samson whipped Ben Shikongo for two sixes, before lofting one over extra cover for four.

But Shikongo had the last laugh as Samson perished after going early on the flick against a slower ball and was caught at deep midwicket. Kishan maintained the tempo by driving and pulling JJ Smit for boundaries, before carting Shikongo and Trumpelmann for a boundary each. The sixth over was pure carnage, as Kishan tore into Smit by smashing four sixes in five balls – from downtown to long leg – and reached his fifty in just 20 balls with a swivel-pull going for four.

That stunning show of strokeplay meant India’s Power-play tally of 86/1 is the highest total in the six-over phase in this competition. After India brought up their hundred in 6.5 overs, Namibia’s fightback began when Erasmus had Kishan mistiming a pull to deep mid-wicket.

Skipper Suryakumar Yadav found Erasmus’s slingers tricky, and that pressure led to him being stumped for 12 off Bernard Scholtz. Erasmus had his second scalp when Tilak Varma miscued to long-off, as India slipped to 124/4 in 11.5 overs.

Pandya and Dube led India’s rebuilding act by initially being cautious against spin, before the former broke the shackles with a towering six off Scholtz and creaming Trumpelmann through extra cover for four.

Dube, meanwhile, unleashed a monstrous 107-metre pull off Scholtz, before Pandya carted him for six over long-off and four through extra cover as Scholtz’s final over went for 24 runs, including wides and misfields.

Pandya welcomed Shikongo in the 16th over by hitting a six down the ground, before lofting and slicing him for two boundaries. After Dube squeezed a yorker from Smit past third man for four, Pandya got his fifty in 27 balls by smacking Erasmus over cow corner for six.

Despite crossing the 200-mark, another wobble followed India: Pandya miscued a full toss to deep square leg, who completed the dismissal via a juggling relay catch, while Dube was run-out thanks to a sharp throw from Erasmus, and Axar Patel was castled by a super slow slinger from him. With Rinku Singh and Arshdeep Singh falling in the final over to Smit, India didn’t get the required finishing touches and ended one run short of 210.

Brief scores:

India 209/9 in 20 overs (Ishan Kishan 61, Hardik Pandya 52; Gerhard Erasmus 4-20) against Namibia

–IANS

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