The Netherlands secured the top spot among associate teams in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup by defeating Namibia in a Group C match. With a win/loss ratio of 0.647, the Netherlands leads the 15 associate teams in the tournament. Scotland follows as the second most successful associate nation, with Namibia and Ireland trailing behind.
Bas De Leede’s all-round performance was instrumental in the Netherlands’ seven-wicket victory over Namibia. De Leede’s contribution of two wickets restricted Namibia to 156/8 before he led the Dutch chase with an unbeaten 72 off 48 balls. This win marked the Netherlands’ first victory in the T20 World Cup 2026.
The match against Namibia also saw the Netherlands achieve their largest victory in terms of wickets in the T20 World Cup. Captain Scott Edwards’ decision to field first proved effective as the Dutch team displayed a clinical bowling performance.
Aryan Dutt’s breakthrough early in the innings set the tone for the Netherlands, who managed to contain Namibia to 40 runs in the powerplay. Despite a resilient partnership between Jan Frylinck and Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, Namibia struggled to accelerate the scoring rate.
In response, the Netherlands started strongly, scoring 50 runs in the powerplay but lost key wickets early on. Bas De Leede and Colin Ackermann’s partnership steered the Netherlands towards victory, with De Leede’s impressive half-century guiding the team to a total of 159/3 in 18 overs.
