Bengaluru, Nov. 8: India notched up a comfortable 9-wicket victory over Namibia in their T20 World Cup Super 12 match at the Dubai International Stadium to bring an end to Virat Kohli's T20I captaincy on a winning note.
Rohit has been overlooking things for a while and Indian cricket is in good hands: Kohli hints at successorThough India's result against Namibia on Monday was inconsequential, for the Indian dugout it was an important game as not only did Kohli bring the curtains down on his T20 captaincy, it was also the last match for outgoing head coach Ravi Shastri.
The Indian team put up a clinical display with both bat and ball to end Shastri's era on a winning note. The last match of the Super 12 stage was rendered inconsequential as New Zealand's win over Afghanistan saw India miss out on a semifinal berth. But the Indian side signed off their disappointing campaign with a comfortable win over Namibia.
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After winning the toss, India restricted Namibia to 132/8, before chasing down the total in 15.2 overs. Rohit Sharma (56) and KL Rahul (54 not out) stitched together an opening stand of 86 to set India up for a comfortable win.
Suryakumar Yadav, who came in ahead of skipper Kohli, finished off the job with an unbeaten 25 as India won their final Super 12 match. Jan Frylinck pocketed the only wicket for Namibia as he removed Rohit Sharma in the tenth over.
Earlier, India restricted Namibia to 132. After being sent into bat by Kohli, Namibia struggled to get going and they suffered a batting collapse after an opening stand of 33 between Stephan Baard (21) and Michael van Lingen (14).
David Wiese top-scored for Namibia with a 25-ball 26. For India, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja led the bowling attack as they picked up three wickets apiece while Jasprit Bumrah got two.
This match is the last for Virat Kohli as India captain in T20 Internationals while Ravi Shashtri is donning the head coach's hat for the last time. While it is yet to be announced who will take over the T20I captaincy from Kohli, with Rohit Sharma leading the race, the India's head coach spot has already been filled.
Rahul Dravid is set to take over the reigns of the Indian cricket from Shastri. India, who lost their opening game to Pakistan and then to New Zealand, bounced back to register three wins on the trot. But the first two losses sealed their fate as they finished third on the table. Meanwhile, Namibia finished fifth with just one win.
Brief Scores: Namibia: 132 for 8 in 20 overs (David Wiese 26; Ravindra Jadeja 3/16, Ravichandran Ashwin 3/20). lost to India: 136 for 1 in 15.2 overs (Rohit Sharma 56; KL Rahul 54 not out; Jan Frylinck 1/19).
(With inputs from PTI)
