Tariq's 4-fer Spins Pakistan Into Super 8s With 102-Run Rout Of Namibia

Chasing a steep target, Namibia began positively with Louren Steenkamp showing early intent. He launched Faheem Ashraf for a six down the ground and followed it up with crisp boundaries, helping Namibia reach 40/2 at the end of the powerplay despite losing Jan Frylinck and Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton.

Steenkamp continued to anchor the innings, striking three fours and a six in his 23 off 22 balls, but Pakistan's spin trio soon tightened their grip on the contest. Mohammad Nawaz provided the breakthrough immediately after the Power-play, inducing a mistimed slog from Steenkamp that was safely pouched by wicketkeeper Usman Khan.

From there, Pakistan's spinners took complete control, exploiting the turning surface brilliantly. The ball turned significantly more for Pakistan, averaging 3.6 degrees of turn compared to Namibia's spinners, making strokeplay increasingly difficult.

Shadab Khan was instrumental in dismantling the middle-order, finishing with excellent figures of 3 for 19. He removed Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus, who edged behind attempting a late cut, and later deceived Alexander Volschenk with a sharp turn and bounce to have him stumped. Volschenk had briefly counterattacked with a six and a boundary but was unable to sustain momentum.

Usman Tariq then delivered the decisive blows with a superb spell of variations. His clever use of the googly and carrom ball left Namibia's lower-order clueless. He bowled Ruben Trumpelmann with a disguised googly, forced JJ Smit into a mistimed slog-sweep, and clean bowled Bernard Scholtz through the gate. Tariq finished with outstanding figures, picking up three wickets while maintaining relentless control.

Namibia's resistance faded rapidly as wickets fell in clusters. From a steady 72/4, they collapsed to 81/7 within the space of two overs, effectively ending any hopes of a comeback.

The end came swiftly when Tariq dismissed Willem Myburgh for 8, inducing an edge to the wicketkeeper to complete Pakistan's comprehensive victory and formally secure their progression into the Super 8s.

Earlier, Pakistan's imposing total of 199 had already placed Namibia under immense pressure, and their spin attack ensured there would be no upset. Pakistan's disciplined bowling, sharp fielding-including a superb low catch from Saim Ayub, and tactical use of spin underscored their dominance.

With this emphatic win, Pakistan confirmed their place in the final eight, thereby ending the USA's hopes.

Brief scores:

Pakistan 199/3 in 20 overs (Sahibzada Farhan 100, Saim Ayub 38; Jack Brasell 2-48, Gerhard Erasmus 1-25) beat Namibia 97/10 in 17.3 overs (Louren Steenkamp 23, Alexander Volschenk 20; Usman Tariq 4-16, Shadab Khan 3-19) by 102 runs.

- IANS