'Don’t know why we didn’t get to train under lights' - Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus ahead of India clash

Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus didn’t hold back in his honest assessment of his team’s preparation ahead of their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 match against India in Delhi.

With the big game scheduled to start under lights at 7 PM, Erasmus revealed that his side had not been allocated a single night practice session, a situation he found puzzling given the challenge that awaits.

“We haven’t been given a night training [session] before this game, I don’t know why. pointing out that India had two evening nets while Canada were also granted night practice ahead of their fixture. Make of that what you want… but we’ll just rock up and do our Namibian way, which is to fight,” the Namibian captain was quoted as saying  by Cricbuzz.

The skipper’s comments underline a key concern for the African side, who lack infrastructure for day-night cricket back home and rarely get opportunities to train under floodlights. Erasmus explained that only few players from his team have regular exposure to night conditions, especially to those who have featured in leagues like the ILT20 or Nepal Premier League, while stating that adapting to playing under light can be tricky.

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

Despite the scheduling frustration, Erasmus stressed that his team’s focus remains on competing fiercely against the defending champions, embracing the challenge in the Namibian way ahead of a massive match-up for the Namibians at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi.

India will take on Namibia in a crucial game for both teams' qualification prospects. Words like these from the Namibian captain have certainly added fuel into the contest.