T20 World Cup 2021: Pakistan players pay surprise visit in Namibia dressing room, congratulate them for playing 'brilliant cricket'

In a brilliant display of sportsman spirit, the Pakistan cricket team visited Namibia to congratulate the team for their impressive journey in the T20 World Cup in UAE. The two teams faced off at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi on November 2, when Babar Azam’s side registered their fourth successive victory, beating Namibia by a comprehensive margin of 45 runs.

Playing their maiden T20I tournament, Namibia displayed an impressive brand of cricket to first sail through the qualifiers and reach into the Super12 before managing to defeat Scotland in the main draw to register their first-ever World Cup victory. While they have lost the other two group stage encounters so far, against Afghanistan and Pakistan, they are yet to face India and New Zealand.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) took to its official Twitter to post a video where their players can be seen inside the Namibia dressing room indulged in a warm interaction. “#SpiritofCricket – Pakistan team visited Namibia dressing room to congratulate them on their journey in the @T20WorldCup,” the caption read.

“Congratulations on qualifying and playing this [brand of] cricket. You have done a great job and played some brilliant cricket. We see a very, very good future in you. All the best to you guys,” said a PCB official congratulating the Namibia team before the players of both sides shook hands and clicked a few photographs with each other.

Former South Africa pacer Albie Morkel, who is currently the Assistant Coach of Namibia, thanked Pakistan for their thoughtful gesture. “Thank you @TheRealPC for making some time to visit our change room. The @CricketNamibia1 guys really enjoyed playing against you,” read Morkel’s tweet.

On Tuesday, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan once again played the chief role in helping their team to a dominating win that sealed them a semi-final berth. Having previously defeated India, New Zealand and Afghanistan while chasing, Pakistan skipper opted to bat against Gerhard Erasmus’ men in a bid to “test the batters”.

A 49-ball 70 from Babar and an unbeaten 50-ball 79 from Rizwan powered Pakistan to 189/2, which the bowlers defended quite easily in the end. For their part, Namibia showed some fight with both bat and ball, as they had kept Pakistan tied for the first 10 overs, in which the Babar-Rizwan duo could only manage 59 runs despite not losing a wicket. However, Rizwan cut loose alongside Mohammad Hafeez (32 off 16) to take his team to a massive target, with Pakistan scoring 130 in the next 10 overs.

Thank you @TheRealPCB for making some time to visit our change room. The @CricketNamibia1 guys really enjoyed playing against you. https://t.co/QQ9xywbmbj

— Albie Morkel (@albiemorkel) November 3, 2021