Namibia have secure their place in the 2018 Under-19 World Cup by beating Nepal in the seventh place play-off today in Fatullah.

Namibia batted first after their captain Zane Green won the toss in a match reduced to 45 overs. Their innings got off to a poor start when Niko Davin was dismissed from the first ball of the match. Number three Lohan Louwrens led the way for them early on, scoring 59 before being bowled by Prem Tamang.

On the back foot at 113 when the fifth wicket fell in the 33rd over, the sixth wicket pairing of Francois Rautenbach and Michael van Lingen got Namibia back into the game with a 99 run partnership that ended when Rautenback was out for 39.

Van Lingen went on to score 58 before he was out, and Namibia batted out their overs to reach 225-9. Sandeep Lamichane was the pick of the Nepali bowlers with 3-35.

Nepal lost Shankar Rana early on in their reply, but recovered thanks to a 97 run partnership for the second wicket between Sunil Dhamala and Yogendra Karki. That partnership ended when Dhamala was out for 59. Two more wickets followed quickly, and Nepal found themselves on 113-4.

Aarif Sheikh and Dipendra Airee put on 53 for the fifth wicket, but there was no other significant partnership. Aarif Sheikh's dismissal sparked a mini collapse that prevented Nepal from getting back into the game. They were eventually bowled out for 210 to lose by 15 runs.

Namibia will be delighted with their performance in this tournament. Not one of the associates reckoned to be in with a chance of reaching the quarter finals, they've ended as the top associate in the tournament.

Nepal meanwhile can feel a little hard done by. They've finished ahead of three full members and will have to play regional qualifiers for the next World Cup whilst those three full members along with Australia - who didn't even play this tournament - will get a free pass. So much for the ICC's commitment to meritocratic pathways.