Blessing Muzarabani “Stunning” In Powerplay, Says Erasmus As Namibia Fail To Contain Zimbabwe Quick

NAMIBIA captain Gerhard Erasmus admitted his side “didn’t manage Blessing too well” as Zimbabwe fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani ripped through the Eagles’ top order to set up a five-wicket Chevrons win in the Tri-Series on Thursday. Erasmus, who top-scored for Namibia with an unbeaten 88, said Muzarabani’s return to form in the powerplay was the key difference on a good Namibia Cricket Ground pitch. Speaking after the match, Erasmus gave full credit to the Zimbabwe spearhead who has IPL experience on his belt. "So, again, it's such a great opportunity for those batters to face the quality of Bless. Bless plays in IPL. Goes to show the quality of cricketer that he is," Erasmus said. "And, yeah, I think he himself would have said that his previous two games probably weren't his best. So, yeah, I think he wanted to write that today. And in the powerplay, they were stunning together with the debutant Kundai (Matigimu)." Erasmus said Muzarabani, alongside Brad Evans, gave Namibia no room early. "The Zimbabwean bowlers bowled well. My tall friend Blessing hit the pitch nicely. Our batters didn't quite have the answer for that on the day." The Eagles limped to 34-3 in the powerplay and could only manage 155/6, a total Erasmus said was always going to be tough to defend against a Zimbabwe side that bats deep. "We didn’t manage Blessing too well today. We didn’t manage his bowling too well today in the powerplay," he said. "The only thing that I do feel is that it just didn't feel like we were a confident side in the powerplay. The results can happen. You can be 34-3. But I think if you want to put yourself in as good a position to perform, I think you need to be confident in your abilities." Jan Frylinck and Michael van Lingen, usually Namibia’s best powerplay batters, failed to get going against Muzarabani’s bounce and pace. Despite the loss, Erasmus said facing bowlers of Muzarabani’s calibre was exactly what Namibia needs as an Associate nation building towards more 50-over cricket and World Cups. "It's a simple math. It's about getting those people onto your shores and playing against them. That's why I alluded to the excellent relationship that we are forming with Zimbabwe Cricket." Zimbabwe now need Namibia to beat South Africa on Friday to reach the final. If the Proteas win, the Chevrons go through.