Namibia and Zimbabwe secure spots in the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup

Namibia and Zimbabwe secure spots in the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup

Namibia and Zimbabwe have booked their places at the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup after reaching the final of the African qualifying tournament in Harare. Namibia beat Tanzania by 63 runs. Hosts Zimbabwe beat Kenya and qualify for the World Cup.

Zimbabwe joined Namibia in securing a spot at the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup after comfortably beating Kenya in the second semi-final of the ICC Africa qualifiers in Harare. South Africa had already qualified directly, making them the third African team in the tournament.

Earlier in the day, Namibia booked their ticket by defeating Tanzania with ease at the same venue. Asked to bat first, Namibia posted a strong 174 for 6, thanks to captain Gerhard Erasmus and JJ Smit, who both hit fifties. Despite losing four wickets in the powerplay, the pair rebuilt the innings with aggressive strokeplay. Erasmus scored 55 off 41 balls with six boundaries, while Smit remained unbeaten on 61 off 43 balls, hitting one four and four sixes.

Namibia’s bowlers then took charge. Smit struck again with the ball, removing Arun Yadav and Dhrumit Mehta in the same over, and later dismissed Mukesh Suthar to end with 3 for 16. Ben Shikongo also impressed, picking up 3 for 21. Tanzania showed some fight but couldn’t chase down the target, falling short by 63 runs.

In the second semi-final, Zimbabwe’s bowlers restricted Kenya to 122 for 6. Blessing Muzarabani led the attack with 2 for 19 in four overs, while Richard Ngarava dismissed Kenya’s top scorer Rakep Patel, who made 65 off 47 balls.

Zimbabwe’s chase was explosive. Openers Brian Bennett and Tadiwanashe Marumani smashed 70 runs in the first six overs one of Zimbabwe’s best-ever powerplay performances in T20Is. Bennett was especially destructive, scoring 51 off 25 balls with eight fours and a six, including six consecutive boundaries in one over from Lucas Oluoch. He now leads the tournament with 299 runs in four innings at an average of 74.75 and a strike rate of 184.56.

Vraj Patel dismissed both openers, but Zimbabwe had already crossed 100. Captain Sikandar Raza fell cheaply, but Ryan Burl and Tony Munyonga calmly finished the chase in 15 overs with seven wickets in hand. Brendan Taylor, who had smashed 123 against Botswana earlier in the tournament, wasn’t needed this time.

With this win, Zimbabwe sealed their place in the 2026 T20 World Cup, joining Namibia and South Africa as Africa’s representatives. The tournament promises to be a thrilling showcase of emerging and established talent.