NAMIBIAN Eagles captain Gerhard Erasmus excelled on the international cricket stage by scoring the most runs in One Day International matches during 2022.
Erasmus scored 956 runs in 21 matches at an excellent average of 56,23, which included one century and eight 50s.
His highest score was 121 not out off 120 balls in a 110-run victory against Oman on March 6, while he narrowly missed out on a second century when he scored 96 not out in a 4-wicket defeat to Scotland on 1 December.
Some of his other memorable knocks included 76 in a 7-wicket victory against Oman on 11 March; 53 in a 63-run victory against Nepal on 16 July; 87 in a 68-run victory against the USA on 17 September; and 71 in a 3-wicket victory against PNG on 23 November.
Erasmus finished well ahead on the top ODI run scorers chart, with Vriitya Aravind of UAE finishing 175 runs behind in second place with 781 runs at an average of 41,10, while Aaron Jones of the USA finished third with 777 runs at an average of 45,29.
Players from Associate nations dominated the charts, with the top five run-scorers coming from these countries, while the top batter from a test-nation, Shreyas Iyer of India, could only finish sixth with 724 runs at an average of 55,69.
Erasmus also shone with the ball, taking 12 wickets at an average of 27,7, and coupled with his brilliant fielding and excellent leadership, he has become a vital cog in the Eagles' lineup.
Two more Namibian players - off spinner Bernard Scholtz and pace bowler Ruben Trumpelmann - shone in the bowling department, finishing amongst the top 10 ODI wicket takers of the year.
Bilal Khan of Oman finished on top with 43 wickets at an average of 16,86, followed by Sompal Kami of Nepal (35 wickets at an average of 22,77) and Basil Hameed of UAE (32 wickets at an average of 16,65).
Scholtz finished fourth with 32 wickets at an average of 16,78, while Trumpelmann finished eighth with 29 wickets at an average of 26,48.
Associate nations' players once again dominated the top bowlers list, taking the top five places, while the top test-nation player was Adam Zampa of Australia, who finished sixth with 30 wickets at an average of 17,53.
Namibian players also excelled in the Cricket World Cup League 2 series over the 2019-22 four-year cycle, which serves as a qualifier for the 2023 Cricket World Cup.
Erasmus was amongst the leading run scorers, finishing third overall with 1166 runs at an average of 48,58, with MD Patel of the USA leading the list (1219 runs at an average of 36,93), followed by another American, Aaron Jones (1184 runs at an average of 42,28).
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The only other Namibian batters who finished in the Top 25 were JJ Smit - 19th with 622 runs at an average of 28,27; and Nicol Loftie-Eaton - 23rd with 548 runs at an average of 36,53.
Scholtz finished fourth amongst the top wicket takers with 44 wickets at an average of 18,15; while Trumpelmann finished 10th with 36 wickets at an average of 24,83.
Three more Namibians finished amongst the Top 25 - JJ Smit came 13th with 32 wickets at an average of 23,62; Jan Frylinck came 18th with 29 wickets at an average of 29,03; and Tangeni Lungameni came 22nd with 27 wickets at an average of 19,81.
Namibia are currently third on the Cricket World Cup League 2 log, and with six matches in hand they are well-placed to finish amongst the top three nations who will progress to the final qualifier for the 2023 Cricket World Cup.
Scotland lead the way with 46 points from 32 matches, followed by Oman on 44 points from 36 matches and Namibia on 37 points from 30 matches.
Fourth-placed USA on 35 points have completed their 36 matches and cannot overtake Namibia anymore, but UAE, who have 27 points and 10 matches in hand; and Nepal with 18 points and 12 matches in hand, still have a mathematical chance of pipping Namibia to third place on the log.
