Namibia Triumph in Run Fest

Namibia beat Karnataka by five wickets after great batting displays by both sides on Sunday to level their 50-over series at one-all.

After being sent in to bat, Karnataka piled on the runs to score 360/4 off their 50 overs, but Namibia chased down the target as they reached 362/5 with one ball to spare.

Namibian pace bowler Ben Shikongo got an early breakthrough, dismissing Ravikumar Samarth for 5, but Nikin Jose joined LR Chethan to put Karnataka in charge with a great double-century partnership.

The two batters both reached their centuries while they shared a second wicket partnership of 258 runs before Chethan was finally dismissed by Jan Frylinck for 169 (147 balls, 13x4, 8x6).

Jose was dismissed for 103 off 109 balls (5x4, 2x6), while Krishnamurthy Siddarth added a quickfire 59 off 27 balls (1x4, 6x6) as Karnataka reached a commanding 360/4.

It was a huge target to chase but Namibia got off to great start as opening batters Niko Davin and Stephen Baard put on a century partnership for the first wicket.

Davin was the first to go, bowled by Shubhang Hegde for 70 (62 balls, 10x4, 2x6), and when Baard was next out for 57 (68 balls, 5x4), Namibia had reached 146/2 at the halfway mark of their innings.

They were lagging behind the required run rate, but Michael van Lingen and Gerhard Erasmus brought Namibia right back into contention with a great 188-run partnership for the third wicket.

Erasmus was unfortunate to miss out on his century as he was caught on the boundary for 91 (67 balls,8x4, 2x6), but Van Lingen reached his century before being dismissed for 104 (85 balls, 7x4, 5x6).

At Van Lingen's departure, the match was still delicately balanced with Namibia needing 20 runs off the final two overs, but Zane Green scored a great scooped six, while Jan Frylinck hit the winning four off the penultimate ball of the match as Namibia completed a great victory.

The series is now level at 1-1 after Karnataka won the first match by nine wickets. The third match takes place on Wednesday, 7 June.

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