Frylinck century gives Namibia 2-1 ODI series lead over Ireland

Namibia moved into a 2-1 lead in their five-match one-day international series against Ireland with a 63-run victory in Windhoek on Tuesday. Jan Frylinck made 126 in the hosts’ total of 316-7 before Ireland were dismissed for 253, despite a century from Curtis Campher, according to BBC Sport’s match report.

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The result leaves Ireland needing to win both remaining matches to take the series. Their pursuit of a target of 317 was also affected by the absence of captain Paul Stirling, who could not bat after hurting a finger while fielding. The BBC report did not specify the severity of the injury or whether it would affect his availability for the remaining games.

Namibia chose to bat after winning the toss and lost opener Louren Steenkamp for 13 with the score at 33-1. Malan Kruger contributed 42 before his dismissal left the home side 81-2. Frylinck and captain Gerhard Erasmus then added 101 for the third wicket, building the partnership that helped Namibia recover from those two early losses and move towards a total above 300.

Erasmus finished with 54, while Alex Volschenk contributed 36 alongside Frylinck’s century. Ireland’s most successful wicket-takers were Andy McBrine, who returned 2-53, and Campher, who took 2-68. Namibia completed their full 50 overs with seven wickets down, leaving the visitors a chase in which they would have to manage without Stirling’s contribution with the bat.

Ireland slipped to 56-4 in reply before Campher offered resistance with 106 from 86 deliveries. His innings gave the tourists a chance of recovering from that difficult start, but wickets continued to fall around him. The chase ended after 44.5 overs, with 31 balls unused. Bernard Scholtz took 2-31 and Ruben Trumpelmann 2-37, while Jack Brassell also claimed two wickets, finishing with 2-72.

The teams meet again on Friday and Sunday, with Namibia now one victory away from securing the series. For Ireland, those two fixtures remain part of their preparations for next year’s World Cup qualifiers, but Tuesday’s defeat means there is no further margin for a loss if they are to finish this series ahead.