South Africa opener Jordan Hermann matched the world record for most runs scored in an innings on ODI debut. The 24-year-old slammed 150 runs against Namibia in the first of the three-match series in Windhoek. He reached the milestone in 126 deliveries and became the fastest to score 150 runs on ODI debut.
However, he failed to breach Matthew Breetzke’s record, who also scored 150 on his ODI debut against New Zealand in Lahore on February 10, 2025. Breetzke had completed the feat in 148 balls. With that, Hermann and Breetzke are now the only two batters to have reached 150 in their first ODI appearance.
Meanwhile, Hermann was dismissed by Namibia seamer Ruben Trumpelmann on the fifth delivery of the 42nd over. Nevertheless, he played a vital role in Proteas’ innings, having built a 190-run partnership with Tony de Zorzi. The number three batter scored 72 runs off 84 balls, as South Africa posted 348 runs on the board in the first innings.
Trumpelmann knocks four for Namibia
The series against South Africa is extremely important for South Africa. It’s a trial for them ahead of the ODI World Cup in 2027, which they are co-hosting alongside South Africa and Zimbabwe. Notably, it was also the first-ever ODI played on Namibian soil and hence the match had a lot of significance for the hosts.
Now, they would be relatively content with their performance with the ball. Trumpelmann claimed four, while Gerhard Erasmus and JJ Smit picked one each. The hosts were very disciplined with the ball in the powerplay and also in the death, but it was the middle overs, especially when Hermann was batting, that the match slightly went beyond their reach.
They now reach impressive showings with the bat, which could be complicated given the stacked bowling attack of South Africa.
Namibia (Playing XI): Malan Kruger, Louren Steenkamp, Alexander Volschenk, Jan Frylinck, Gerhard Erasmus (c), Zane Green (wk), JJ Smit, Ruben Trumpelmann, Jack Brassell, Max Heingo, Bernard Scholtz
South Africa (Playing XI): Jordan Hermann, Connor Esterhuizen, Tony de Zorzi, Dewald Brevis, Rubin Hermann (wk), Jason Smith, Corbin Bosch, Duan Jansen, Bjorn Fortuin (c), Prenelan Subrayen, Kwena Maphak
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