T20 World Cup 2026: Pandya and Kishan Power India to Emphatic 93-Run Victory Over Namibia

Image: ©BCCI

India continued their dominant run in Group A of the T20 World Cup 2026 with a comfortable 93-run demolition of Namibia at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. on Thursday. Although the Indian batting lineup had some inconsistent performance from top to bottom, a scintillating half-century from Ishan Kishan and Hardik Pandya proved too big a task for Namibia to chase down.

The Ishan Kishan firepower

Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson opened the innings for India after being asked to bat first. Since Abhishek Sharma missed the match due to illness, it was an opportunity for Sanju to prove his worth at the top of the order.

The Kerala opener did try to grab his opportunity, but after some quick runs, 22 of 8, he departed early in the innings. Then it was all about Ishan Kishan, who tore into the Namibian attack. The left-hander blazed his way to a half-century of just 20 balls and then eventually fought for a solid 61 of 24 deliveries, where he had hit nine boundaries and four sixes.

India reached their 100 in just 6.5 overs, signalling a big score.

However, Namibia’s captain Gerhard Erasmus staged a remarkable solo fightback with the ball as he utilised the slowing Delhi surface to claim 4 wickets for just 20 runs, including the crucial scalps of Kishan and Tilak Varma. Erasmus was just trickery as he bowled with a low angled arm and also bolted from behind the popping crease to trick Tilak and Ishan.

Pandya’s finishing touch

With the slow and struggling innings from captain Surya Kumar Yadav and Tilak Varma, India struggled to get going in the middle overs as Namibian spinners gave them no room to free their arms.

But then it was Hardik Pandya who took the charge, playing with a mix of calculated aggression and brute force. Pandya smashed 52 of just 28 balls to take India's total close to 200.

India lost four wickets in just seven runs as they finished on 209/9 in their first innings. Although India could have scored way more than that, 200+ looked daunting for Namibia.

The chase: Varun and Axar strangle Namibia

Namibia’s chase began with promise as Louren Steenkamp (29) and Jan Frylinck (22) took the score to 33/0 in three overs. However, the introduction of spin completely changed the complexion of the game.

Varun Chakaravarthy was the pick of the bowlers for India, as he delivered a mesmerising spell of 3/7 in just 2 overs.

Varun's trickery and mystery leg spin, including googlies and first of ones, dismantled the top order, dismissing Steenkamp and JJ Smit in quick succession.

Axar Patel provided elite support to him, claiming 2/20, while a returning Jasprit Bumrah looked sharp, cleaning the stumps of Ruben Trumpelmann to remind the world of his fitness before the big clash against Pakistan.

Namibia’s resistance crumbled from 86/2 to 116 all out in just nine overs. Hardik Pandya capped off his Player of the Match performance by taking two wickets in two balls. This effectively ended the contest in the 18th over.

With a positive NRR of 3.050, India is now at the top of Group A with 4 points in two games. Their game against Pakistan can eventually determine who will finish at the top of Group A before the knockouts.