1st Retired Out In T20 World Cup 2026! Namibia's Zane Green Records Unwanted Feat Vs USA

Namibia repeat unwanted feat [Source: @AssociateChrons/x]

Namibia cricket team just added to its unwanted feat in their recently-concluded T20 World Cup 2026 match against USA in Chennai. Chasing 200 runs at the Chepauk Stadium, Namibia concluded their 20 overs at 168-6 to fall 31 runs short of USA.

At the start of the penultimate over of Namibia’s run chase, team captain Gerhard Erasmus also seemingly retired out a struggling Zane Green.

Zane Green joins Nikolaas Davin as Namibia repeat shambolic World Cup feat

Namibia wicketkeeper-batter Zane Green got ‘retired out’ against USA in match number 26 of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Chennai on February 15. Batting at number six in a tall chase of 200, Green arrived at the crease at 123-4 in 14.4 overs.

The 29-year-old struck two boundaries in his innings, and listed 18 runs off 13 balls. While his innings strike rate of 138.46 appeared decent on paper, it fell way short of Namibia’s asking rate at the time.

Zane Green eventually walked off the field before the start of the 19th over to become only the second batter to get “retired out” in the history of the men’s T20 World Cup.

Notably, the first batter to attain the unwanted feat was also a Namibian, none other than out-of-favor right-handed batter Nikolaas Davin. Nikolaas was ‘retired out’ at the end of the sixth over in Namibia’s 126-run chase in a 10-over game against England at the 2024 T20 World Cup.

Much like the Zane Green instance, Namibia also lost its match against England back in June 2024 in North Sound.

Namibia slips to the bottom of Group A

Despite calling back Zane Green, Namibia still lost its USA match by 31 runs to register their third successive defeat this 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

Earlier in the day, USA batted first and mounted 199-4 in 20 overs. Captain and opening batter Monank Patel struck a fiery 30-ball 52, while middle-order basher Sanjay Krishnamurthi blasted 68* off just 33 balls.

In response, Namibia opener Louren Steenkamp composed an elegant 58 from 39 balls, but lack of assistance from the other end ensured they managed just 168-6 in 20 overs. For USA, in-form fast bowler Shadley van Schalkwyk picked up figures of 2-30 to extend his tournament tally to 13 wickets.

With the defeat, the Namibia team also slipped to the bottom of the Group A points table with a dismal NRR of -2.443.

Namibia to play for pride against Pakistan

Already out of the Super 8 race of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, Namibia will now face a strong Pakistan team in match number 35 of the tournament. The impending fixture also marks the final Group A appearance for both sides this competition.

With three losses in three games, Namibia will be hoping to stun Pakistan in a bid to avoid the wooden-spoon tag of Group A. The match will be hosted by the SSC Ground in Colombo on February 18.