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Namibia's veteran all-rounder David Wiese who has represented Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) has closed the curtains on his international career. Namibia played their last game of the T20 World Cup 2024 and lost to England by 41 runs (DLS method) in a rain-curtailed game at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua.
Wiese gave it all in his last T20I appearance. He opened the bowling for Namibia and conceded just one run in his first over. In the second over, he dismissed Philip Salt with a knuckle ball. The only boundary he conceded was off Jonny Bairstow's bat. He conceded just six runs from his quota of two overs.
After England set a target of 126, Namibia openers failed to keep up with the scoring rate. After the sixth over, Namibia's score was 44 for no loss. That's when opener Nikolaas Davin retired out and Wiese walked out to bat. He opened his account with a boundary against Sam Curran. In the eighth over, he smashed Adil Rashid for a couple of sixes and a four. But in the end, Namibia openers left too much to chase. In the final over, Wiese lost his wicket to Jofra Archer in an attempt to clear the boundaries. He departed for a 12-ball 27 and got a standing ovation from the crowd.
Captain lauds Wiese
After the game, Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus admitted that he made a mistake by not sending Wiese to bat earlier in the run chase. He hailed him as an inspiration to all the players.
“He does not want to open, next time we can get him in quicker, but it's his last game and nice to see him bat well. Massive impact and he is a great guy with the performances on the field and we have learned from him off the field and he has been an inspiration for us,” Erasmus said in the post-match presentation.
Wiese’s heroics against Oman
Wiese was the star of Namibia’s only win in the T20 World Cup 2024 that came against Oman. Namibia beat Oman in super over. Wiese bagged three wickets to help his side bowl out Oman for 109. Late into the run chase, he took the game into super over. In the super over, he scored 13 runs from four balls. Defending 21 runs, he conceded 10 runs as Namibia beat Oman.
Wiese’s numbers
Wiese made his T20I debut for South Africa in 2013 and played last game for them in 2016. In 2021, he made his first T20I appearance for Namibia. He has 624 runs from 54 T20Is including three fifties. With the ball, he has 59 wickets.
It will be interesting to see whether Wiese continues to play franchise cricket. He has 4,332 runs and 307 wickets in the T20 format.
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