DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - NOVEMBER 08: Jan Frylinck of Namibia celebrates the wicket of Rohit Sharma of India during the ICC Men's T20 World Cup match between India and Namibia at Dubai International Stadium on November 08, 2021 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images)

The first cab off the rank in the T20 World Cup saw Namibia defeat Sri Lanka in a surprise upset that would pave the way for a storied opening encounter, with Scotland repeating the dose against former short-format winners the West Indies.

Netherlands and Zimbabwe joined the right side of the ledger with wins alongside their names to begin the tournament, downing the UAE and Ireland respectively.

Namibia 163/7 defeated Sri Lanka 108

Sent into bat by Sri Lanka, Namibia stumbled out of the blocks with the opening pair falling cheaply, but the Lions' celebrations were short lived with the Namibian middle order steadying the ship.

Led by Jan Frylinck, who swatted a quick fire 44 (28), the Eagles' number six was supported by a host of talented batting partners contributing to their total of 163, with a handy cameo from JJ Smit rounding out the list of notable scorers adding 31 of his own off 16 rocks.

It was Sri Lanka's turn to test the GMHBA Stadium surface with stick in hand and despite a lone stand from captain Dasun Shanaka, the Namibia bowlers took full control with Weise, Scholtz, Skikongo and Frylinck in the wickets column each with pairs.

The 55-run confidence boosting win for the Eagles can springboard their tournament, placing them into potential favouritism when lining up against the Netherlands in an encounter today at the same venue.

UAE 111/8 defeated by Netherlands 112/7

A nail-biting game two of the group stage played out in Geelong with the Dutch securing a one-point victory off the back of the cool, calm and collected nature of Victorian Premier Cricketer Scott Edwards.

The momentum swinging affair was headlined by Muhammad Waseem registering 41 (47), starring for his UAE counterparts in a knock that was unmatched by either side with a lot of starts controlling the narrative.

A bowler friendly pitch greeted the two teams with wickets galore to namely Junaid Siddique on the frontline for the UAE side, equalled by the efforts of all-rounder Bas De Leede managing a trio of poles, eventually securing a player of the match worthy performance with a handy 14 added with the stick.

South Australian known Tom Cooper failed to work into his innings but will gain another lifeline in a battle facing off against fellow opening round winner, Namibia.

Scotland 160/5 defeated West Indies 118

World Cup hopefuls the West Indies were felled by Scotland in dramatic circumstances at Blundstone Arena, succumbing to the Scottish bowling attack in a batting collapse for the ages after a promising start.

Opening batsman George Munsey proved an immovable force in his innings standing knock which, included nine fours in reaching his not out total of 66 off 53, efforts recognised in the player of the match award.

Spearheads Mark Watt and Brad Wheal showed their worth on the big stage sharing a handful of wickets between them, with Michael Weask chiming in with two, including the prized scalp of West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran.

All-rounder Jason Holder managed 38 (33) to breathe light into the Windies outfit, but the task was too much to overcome with little support around him in helping to draw back the deficit.

A bounce back is on the cards for the West Indies, who are scheduled to face Zimbabwe in another testing affair, placing them in a vulnerable state to replicate their 2016 T20 heroics.

Zimbabwe 174/7 defeated Ireland 143/9

The Tasmanian city again played host to the group stage fixture which saw Zimbabwe take bragging rights over Ireland in a comfortable 31-run triumph.

Winning the toss and electing to bowl, Ireland had the best seats in the house to watch Sikandar Raza go about his business in a thrilling 82 (48) to give Andrew Balbirnie's men a tough chase.

On the back foot early thanks to veteran Paul Stirling not troubling the scorers, the battle remained uphill with untimely wickets helping the Chevrons secure an important first up victory.

Most of the damage was done by Blessing Muzarabani claiming three of his own with teammates Richard Ngarava and Tendai Chatara taking two each, with their endeavours needing to be drawn upon again when opposed to the Windies on Wednesday, Oct 19.