Cricket: Namibia defeat Sri Lanka in wild upset to kick off T20 World Cup

Wicketkeeper Zane Green celebrates a catch to dismiss Danushka Gunathilaka. Photo / Getty

The T20 Cricket World Cup has begun with an absolute boilover in Group A.

Cricket minnows Namibia produced a result nobody would have predicted today, toppling Asian Cup champions Sri Lanka by 55 runs.

Sri Lanka looked to be on top after electing to bowl first as they had Namibia 35-3 after five overs.

But in front of a raucous crowd at GMHBA Stadium in Geelong, the fightback began as Jan Frylinck topped the scores with 44 from 28 deliveries.

His innings helped Namibia post a respectable 163-7, setting Sri Lanka a tough but achievable score.

Namibia had other ideas and put their opponents to the fire early as Sri Lanka limped to 21-3 after 21 deliveries.

The wickets continued to tumble as the Asian Cup champs couldn't handle the constant pressure being applied by the bowlers.

Sri Lanka looked back on the right track thanks to a 34-run partnership between Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Dasun Shanaka. The departure of Rajapaksa however saw Sri Lanka lose four wickets for only 18 runs, eventually being dismissed for a lowly 108.

Frylinck, after his contributions with the bat, produced a stellar display with the ball in hand, finishing with 2-26 from his four overs as he claimed man of the match.

"What we just achieved is above what we thought we could do," he said after the historic win.

Bernard Scholtz, Ben Shikongo and David Wiese all secured two wickets for Namibia who barely put a foot wrong following their early batting collapse.

Cricket fans were floored by the staggering upset to get the tournament off and running.

Namibia. Absolutely bonkers.

Polish off Sri Lanka - the Asian Cup champions - by 55 runs to start the World Cup.

It’s gonna be a good one. #T20WorldCup

— Lachlan McKirdy (@LMcKirdy7) October 16, 2022

Well that’s just outstanding by Namibia. Super in the field, disciplined bowling and tremendous late innings batting. Hard road for SL now, especially if rain is about. Looking forward to the expanded #t20worldcup in the future. #SLvNAM

— Melinda Farrell (@melindafarrell) October 16, 2022

The nightmare first-round result spells further doom for Sri Lanka who not only lost the contest but were wiped off the park by Namibia.

A one-sided defeat puts them well behind in net run rate side and they'll be hoping results go their way in the remaining group games so they can avoid a tougher draw in the Super 12.

Sri Lanka will look to bounce back when they take on the UAE on Tuesday while Namibia will square off against the Netherlands earlier on the same day.