Chakravarthy, Pandya, and Axar shine as India crush Namibia by 93 runs in T20 World Cup
Cricket
Defending champions to face Pakistan next on February 15
NEW DLEHI (Dunya News) – India secured a commanding 93-run victory over Namibia in the 18th group-stage match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi, on Thursday.
Varun Chakravarthy spearheaded the bowling attack with three wickets, supported by Axar Patel and Hardik Pandya, who took two each, as Namibia were bowled out for 116 in 18.2 overs.
Set a daunting target of 210, India got off to a mixed start as Sanju Samson fell for 22 off eight balls, including three sixes and a four. Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma steadied the innings, adding 79 for the second wicket off just 31 deliveries. Kishan top-scored with a blistering 61 off 24 balls, striking six fours and five sixes, before being dismissed at 124/4.
Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube then launched a quickfire 81-run partnership for the fifth wicket, lifting India to a 200-plus total. Pandya scored 52 off 28 balls, hitting four sixes and as many fours, while Dube contributed 23 off 16 deliveries. Despite losing three wickets late in the innings, India posted a formidable 209/9 in their 20 overs.
Biggest win margin for #TeamIndia by runs in ICC Men's #T20WorldCup
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 12, 2026
The #MenInBlue beat Namibia by runs to make it victories in a row!
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/SQLoaZjq98#INDvNAM pic.twitter.com/b0PL2LLSbI
Namibia’s chase began positively with a 67-run opening stand, but the dismissal of Louren Steenkamp for 29 off 20 balls triggered a dramatic collapse. The Eagles lost eight wickets for just 49 runs, with only Steenkamp, Jan Frylinck (20), Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton (13), Gerhard Erasmus (18), and Zane Green (11) reaching double figures.
Chakravarthy led India’s bowling with 3/26, while Axar Patel and Pandya claimed two wickets each. Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and Shivam Dube also chipped in with one wicket apiece. Namibia captain Erasmus was the pick of his side with 4/20, but it proved insufficient as India comfortably triumphed.
Following this emphatic win, India will face arch-rivals Pakistan in their next Group A encounter on February 15.
SQUADS
India: Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy.
Namibia: Louren Steenkamp, Jan Frylinck, Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, Gerhard Erasmus (capt), JJ Smit, Zane Green (wk), Ruben Trumpelmann, Malan Kruger, Ben Shikongo, Bernard Scholtz, Max Heingo.
