Top News

IND vs NAM, T20 World Cup: Namibia Skipper Gerhard Erasmus Upset Over No Night Training Session

Sanjeev Kumar | February 12, 2026 3:22 AM CST

Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus expressed disappointment over no night practice ahead of their T20 WC 2026 clash vs India, noting India and Canada got night slots. Despite this, he vowed Namibia would fight hard in their “Namibian way.”

Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus has expressed his disappointment over his team not getting to practice under the floodlights ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 match against Team India at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Thursday, February 11.

Add Asianet Newsable as a Preferred Source googlePreferred

Namibia are playing on Indian soil for the first time in international cricket and had their practice matches against Scotland and India A in Bengaluru before facing off the Netherlands in the Group A match, where they lost to the Dutch by seven wickets at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.

Gerhard Erasmus-led side will head into the second match of their campaign, taking on India, the hosts and defending champions of the tournament, with limited preparations under the floodlights at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.

‘India Has Two Training Sessions’

Speaking at the press conference on the eve of Team India’s clash in New Delhi, Namibia skipper Gerhard Erasmus was apparently upset over not getting an opportunity to play under the floodlights to get acclimatized to night conditions, noting that India had the advantage of having two night sessions.

However, the 30-year-old vowed to stick to “the Namibian way” and fight hard on the field against Team India.

"Yeah, we haven't been given a night training [session] before this game, I don't know why,” Erasmus said.

“I think India has two night training [sessions] and I see outside that Canada will have a night training now, so make of that what you want, but we'll just rock up and do our Namibian way, which is to fight,” he added.

Scroll to load tweet…

According to the report by Cricbuzz, the India squad had a night session on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the slot from 6 pm to 9 pm. While Namibia's players were given the 2 PM to 5 PM practice slots, leaving them without proper preparation under lights ahead of the high-profile clash. Since India's matches are taking place at 7 PM rather than morning at 11 am or afternoon at 3 pm, Namibia will face the challenge of adjusting to night conditions on match day without prior practice under lights.

However, Canada were given the night slots on Wednesday, despite their match against the UAE taking place at 3 pm at the same venue.

Erasmus Cites Lack of Floodlight Experience as Challenge

Further speaking about the challenge, skipper Gerhard Erasmus stated that Namibia’s lack of exposure to day-night matches back at home, saying that the players who have played the T20 Leagues and World Cups often get accustomed to playing under floodlights.

"We haven't got any [flood]lights in Namibia... the day/night games. Infrastructure-wise, it's probably the challenge for us, so yeah, it's not a casual thing for guys that don't have experience,” Erasmus said.

“I think barring the guys who played in the Nepal Premier League and the ILT20 and the World Cups that we've played, you don't really get accustomed to lights and training under it very often," he added.

Scroll to load tweet…

After the match against Team India, Namibia will play the USA at the MA Chidarambaram Stadium in Chennai on February 15, followed by the final group-stage fixture against Pakistan in Colombo on February 18. Both matches will take place at 3 PM, that is afternoon session, giving Namibia a more familiar playing window.

Namibia are playing their fourth consecutive T20 World Cup, having previously featured in the 2021, 2022, and 2024 editions of the marquee event, reaching the Super 12 stage in 2021