BRIDGETOWN: Namibia scored a nerve-shredding victory over Oman in their T20 World Cup Group B clash in Barbados on Sunday after a low-scoring thriller was decided by a super over.
David Wiese was the hero for Namibia, contributing 13 runs in the Africans’ super over total of 21 before then restricting Oman to 10 runs with the ball in hand to seal a crucial win at Kensington Oval.
The match had gone to a decisive extra over after a tense duel saw both teams finish with 109 runs from their allotted 20 overs.
Oman had looked to be heading for defeat after a superb four-wicket bowling display from Ruben Trumpelmann saw them all out for 109 off 19.4 overs.
But Oman’s bowlers responded with a disciplined performance to contain Namibia’s bats, with Mehran Khan conjuring a superb spell to leave the match on a knife edge.
Khan finished with figures of three wickets for seven runs off three overs.
The veteran Oman bowler took two wickets in the final over to frustrate Namibia, who had needed just five runs from the over to clinch victory.
But Khan was bizarrely overlooked for the super over bowling duties by Oman, with Bilal Khan handed the ball instead.
That move backfired spectacularly, though, with Wiese blasting a four off the first ball and then crushing a full toss for six off Khan’s second delivery.
Wiese took three more runs off the next two balls before Namibia skipper Gerhard Erasmus hit back-to-back fours to set Oman a daunting victory target of 22 off their super over.
Wiese took over the bowling duties for Namibia and after conceding just two runs from his first two deliveries, took the wicket of Naseem Khushi.
Two more singles left Oman needing 18 from the last delivery to win, meaning Wiese could allow Zeeshan Maqsood to blast a six knowing victory was assured.
“I definitely aged a couple of years tonight,” the 39-year-old Wiese said. “And I don’t have a lot of years left in me. It was an emotionally draining evening.”
Wiese said he had been confident of steering Namibia to victory with bat and ball in the super over.
“It helped that I had a feel of the game and knew if I get a few hits out in the Super Over .... then with the ball, felt like taking the ball and executing.
“The pitch was difficult and didn’t play the way we thought. But we adapted well.”
Oman captain Aqib Ilyas was left lamenting an agonizing near-miss — but defended the decision to opt for Bilal as the super over bowler over the in-form Khan.
“I think Bilal is one of the best bowlers you can have at this level,” Aqib said. “But there are days where you plan and it doesn’t execute.
“He was clear, we were clear, but maybe the ball was wet and he couldn’t execute.”
Earlier, Trumpelmann had given Namibia a dream start with two wickets from the first two deliveries of the match, part of a four-wicket performance. Wiese also impressed in the regulation 20 overs with 3-28 off 3.4 overs.
Namibia made hard work of the run chase, however, with Jan Frylinck (45) and Niko Davin (24) top scoring as the southern Africans came up just short of their victory target.
Namibia defeat Oman in T20 World Cup after super over thriller
https://arab.news/zf7np
Namibia defeat Oman in T20 World Cup after super over thriller
Drake Maye aims to do what Tom Brady couldn’t with the Patriots: win a playoff game in Denver
FOXBOROUGH, Mass.: Drake Maye has a chance to accomplish something not even Tom Brady did with the Patriots.
Maye is hoping to beat the Broncos in the AFC championship game in Denver on Sunday and lead New England to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2018. The Patriots have never won a playoff game in Denver — losing all four tries, with Brady going 0-3.
“Just the AFC championship, the chance to go to the Super Bowl. That’d be huge,” Maye said. “Another road environment that’s had success in the past. … I know it would be a big-time win.”
The Patriots advanced to their 14th AFC championship game in the last 25 years on Sunday when they beat the Houston Texans 28-16 in Foxborough. Denver beat Buffalo 33-30 to reach the conference title game.
New England and Denver both finished 14-3 in the regular season, but the Broncos won the tiebreaker for home-field advantage because they had a better record against common opponents: Denver beat the Raiders twice this season but the Patriots lost to them.
That loss — to the worst team in the NFL in the first game of the Mike Vrabel era — sent New England into one of the most inhospitable environments in the league. In addition to the high-energy crowd, the Patriots will also have to contend with a low-oxygen environment that they won’t have a chance to acclimate to.
“Kind of what we’ve been doing on the road all season long,” said Maye, who has guided the Patriots to an 8-0 road record this season. “They’ve got a great team, so we’re going to have a tough challenge. But I’m looking forward to getting out there. And getting a chance to possibly celebrate on an away field would be pretty special.”
The last team to go undefeated on the road with a new head coach was the San Francisco 49ers under George Seifert in 1989; they won the Super Bowl.
“Coach has always been saying, ‘Road warriors,’” Maye said. “So, we’re trying to find that one more time and finish out strong what we’ve done this year.”
The Broncos are 18-5 in home playoff games all-time. But they’ll will be without starting quarterback Bo Nix, who broke his ankle near the end of the divisional round victory over Buffalo. Instead, the offense will be led by former Patriot Jarrett Stidham, who hasn’t thrown a pass since 2023.
That’s why New England opened as a 5½-point favorite — the biggest road favorite ever in a conference championship game. The line has since moved to Denver plus-4½.
“We always feel as though no matter what anyone else has to say, we still have something to prove,” said cornerback Marcus Jones, who returned an interception for a touchdown against Houston. “We’re trying to always prove ourselves right and not trying to prove other people wrong. That’s kind of the philosophy we’ve had for a long time.”
Win or lose, the Patriots could have trouble getting back to New England: A major snowstorm is expected to dump a foot or more of snow on the area.
Vrabel said the team is prepared if it can’t leave Denver on Sunday night.
“We have multiple plans of what could go on based on the weather. something that they’re familiar with here,” he said. “I mean, there’s things I can control, that I can’t control.”
