ICC chair Jay Shah met officials from the Africa Cricket Association in Windhoek on Wednesday, underlining the global body’s focus on strengthening and expanding cricket across the African continent. During his visit, Shah also attended an Under-19 World Cup match at Cricket Namibia’s newly built Namibia Cricket Ground (NCG), where he watched some of the game’s emerging talents in action.
“A productive day in Windhoek meeting with cricket leaders from the Africa Cricket Association as @ICC looks to grow and support the sport across the continent. I also enjoyed seeing future stars of the game at the #U19worldcup match at @CricketNamibia1’s terrific new NCG venue,” Shah shared on social media.
Namibia is co-hosting the ongoing ICC Under-19 World Cup alongside Zimbabwe, with both countries staging 12 group-stage matches each. In Namibia, matches are being played at the Namibia Cricket Ground and the HP Oval in Windhoek. Zimbabwe’s share of fixtures is being hosted across three venues in Harare — Queens Sports Club, Harare Sports Club and Takashinga Sports Club.
Cricket infrastructure in Namibia has seen significant growth in recent years. Windhoek hosted the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier from August 31 to September 6 last year, featuring eight nations competing for two places at the Global Qualifier for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
Namibia also enjoyed a landmark moment in men’s cricket last year when they hosted South Africa for a historic one-off T20 international. The match was notable on several counts: it marked the inauguration of the Namibia Cricket Ground, was the first time Namibia faced South Africa in any international format, and ended with the hosts registering a memorable four-wicket victory.
The FNB Namibia Cricket Ground has since emerged as a key venue in the region. It is hosting matches during the 2026 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup and is also scheduled to stage games at the 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, which will be the first time Namibia hosts matches at a senior men’s World Cup.