• Cricket

Franchise T20 lives up to promises of fireworks

• 15 Hours Ago

Ruben Trumpelmann is the leading big hitter of sixes at the halfway point of the 2025 Cricket Namibia Franchise T20 series.

After three matches for each of the four teams, the Eavion Eagles and the Pupkewitz Wildcats lead the way with two wins each (four points) against the NPL Bears and Paratus Jets who have each tasted success once.

The Eagles batting line-up features national team all-rounders Trumpelmann and JJ Smit, who has hit twelve and nine sixes, respectively, so far.

Meanwhile, NPL Bears captain Gerhard Erasmus is the leading run-scorer with 176 in three innings, which was boosted by the only century of the first weekend of matches.

The Franchise T20 series will conclude this coming weekend with a morning and afternoon match each on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. All matches are played at the FNB Namibia Cricket Ground in Olympia.

Summaries of the first weekend’s matches:



FRIDAY MORNING

The Paratus Jets (202/3) grabbed the win by 38 runs in the opening T20 of the series, when they restricted the NPL Bears to 164 for five.

Jets opener Zacheo van Vuuren (57 off 38 balls) hit five fours and two sixes, laying a platform for his captain Nicol Loftie-Eaton (51 off 26 balls; six sixes and one four) and the eventual player of the match Zane Green (50 not out off 24 balls; six fours, one six; scoring rate 208%).

In their reply, the NPL Bears lost Shaun Fouché (9) early to a run-out, but were in the game during the 80-run partnership of opener WP Myburgh (68 off 51 balls; 8x4 1x6) and captain Gerhard Erasmus (40 off 30 balls; 4x4 1x6). However, the innings lost momentum after their departure as Ben Shikongo (2/26) dismissed Erasmus and later Juan Viljoen (1).



FRIDAY AFTERNOON

In a match which could have gone either way off the last ball, the Pupkewitz Wildcats (164/5) had Leo Sadler to thank as they scraped through by two runs against the Eavion Eagles (162/7).

Malan Kruger (21 off 17 balls) captained the Wildcats to their opening win in the series. Along with JP Kotzé (25 off 19 balls; 2x4 2x6) and Jan Frylinck (29 off 22 balls), Kruger helped set the pace for Dylan Leicher, who struck three fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 51 off 34 balls for the Wildcats.

As opening bowler for the Wildcats, Sadler made his mark early, dismissing the Eagles openers Michael van Lingen (4) and JC Balt (5) cheaply through catches. Sadler later made another crucial breakthrough by bowling out the Eagles’ big-hitting Ruben Trumpelmann (48 off 18 balls; six sixes, one four). Trumpelmann fought valiantly after Michau du Preez (49 off 45 balls; 6x4) had also kept the scoreboard moving until Kruger ran him out.

Sadler was named player of the match for his three wickets for 26 in 4 overs, after he had also earlier contributed 18 runs off 16 balls (one four, one six).

Needing 11 runs off the last six balls, and 10 off the last three balls, Trumpelmann hit a six, before Sadler had the last laugh by bowling him out.

Sadler’s bowling partners included Max Heingo (2/22 in 4 overs), who snared Eagles danger men JJ Smit (6) and Alexander Volschenk (0).



SATURDAY MORNING

Team captain Gerhard Erasmus (134 not out off 66 balls) steered the NPL Bears to a 71-run win against the Pupkewitz Wildcats.

The national team captain blasted ten sixes and eight fours at the FNB Cricket Ground, reaching his fifty in 30 balls, and his hundred from 55 balls.

Handre Klazinga played the supporting role, scoring 40 off 27 balls (3x4 1x6), as the NPL Bears accumulated their winning score of 211 for five.

The Pupkewitz Wildcats’ chase showed only brief promise while Jan Frylinck (53 off 27 balls; 6x4 3x6), Dylan Leicher (22 off 19 balls; 2x6) and Michael Müller (19 off 15 balls; 1x4 1x6) were at the crease.

Gerhard Erasmus did not take a wicket (0/13 in 2 overs), but WP Myburgh’s spin gave him four wickets for 24 runs in 4 overs, including bowling Leicher. Klazinga (2/27 in 3) also made breakthroughs against Frylinck and Leo Sadler (1).



SATURDAY AFTERNOON

Ruben Trumpelmann flexed his fast-bowling ability and added a big-hitting half-century in a player-of-the-match performance that helped the Eavion Eagles beat the Paratus Jets by six wickets.

The Eavion Eagles (147/4 in 15.5 overs) chased down the 146/9 of the Paratus Jets to win with 25 balls to spare.

The Jets’ top-scorers were Marcus Bakker (26 off 22) and opener Dian Neethling (20 off 21 balls), while they also profited from 17 wides. However, their innings failed to gain proper momentum against the Eagles’ bowling led by Trumpelmann (2/16 in 4 overs), JJ Smit (2/37 in 4) and Ruan van Rooyen (2/24 in 4).

The Eagles’ innings quickly lost JC Balt (5) and Michau du Preez (6), while Michael van Lingen (24 off 21 balls) hit three fours before his dismissal.

Eagles captain JJ Smit (37 off 22 balls) got going with two fours and three sixes, but Trumpelmann became the star of the show with 64 not out off only 26 balls (three fours, six sixes). Trumpelmann needed only 22 balls before raising his bat for his fifty.

For the Jets, spinners Zhivago Groenewald (2/22 in 4) and Nicol Loftie-Eaton (0/11 in 2) led the way.



SUNDAY MORNING

Pupkewitz Wildcats (177/3) beat Paratus Jets (137 all out) by 40 runs.

Player of the match: Dylan Leicher (Pupkewitz Wildcats) 65 not out off 40 balls, and 2/25 in 3 overs.

Wildcats opener JP Kotzé (24 off 17 balls; 1x4 2x6) shared a partnership of 39 with Jan Frylinck, with the latter compiling 75 runs off 54 balls (6x4 2x6).

The Jets’ innings stuttered as Dian Neethling (20), Zane Green (23) and Marcus Bakker (17) all went out after getting a start, leaving a bit too much for Sam Wearne (27 off 10 balls; three sixes) and Jandré de Jager (21 not out off 25 balls).

Leo Sadler (2/28 in 4), Max Heingo (2/15 in 2) and PD Blignaut (0/10 in 3) supported Leicher’s bowling.



SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Eavion Eagles captain JJ Smit was named player of the match after scoring an unbeaten fifty in Sunday afternoon’s win by 53 runs against the NPL Bears.

Renowned big-hitter Smit smacked 66 not out off 32 balls, with three fours and six sixes, which helped to propel the Eavion Eagles to 201 for five, after Smit had won the toss and elected to bat first.

The bulk of the Eagles’ runs were scored by opener JC Balt (84 off 53 balls; seven sixes, five fours), with number seven Alexander Volschenk later joining Smit for a cameo of 20 not out (10 balls; two fours, one six).

NPL Bears captain Gerhard Erasmus kept his bowling tight (1/27 in 4 overs), with fellow spinners WP Myburgh (0/15 in 2) and Bernard Scholtz (2/37 in 4) also delivering decent economy rates against the Eagles’ batting onslaught.

In their chase of 202, the Bears’ opener WP Myburgh stood tall initially (53 off 45 balls; 4x4), but after the loss of Niko Davin (1) and Gerhard Erasmus (2) the pressure eventually got to the next batsmen Lo-han Louwrens (24 off 17), Handre Klazinga (15 off 18) and Shaun Fouché (18 off 13), as they were restricted to 148 for eight.

The leading Eagles bowler was Ruan van Rooyen (3/32 in 4), while young Douglas Truter junior took 2/18 in 3 overs alongside JJ Smit (1/10 in 2) and Ruben Trumpelmann (0/12 in 2).