Cullinan the brain behind Namibia's fine run

Namibia registered their third successive victory in the International Cricket Council Twenty20 qualifiers Thursday. They have now beaten Ireland, Kenya and Scotland to emerge as a strong contender for a slot in the Twenty20 World Cup in Sri Lanka. And one man playing a key role behind their success is batting consultant and former South Africa star Daryll Cullinan. Speaking to Gulf News on his role in which he has performed as elegantly as his batting, Cullinan said: "I am enjoying the role tremendously. It is good to put in something back into the game by working with players. There is lot of good talent amidst associate countries and the more exposure they get the better it will be for them. Hopefully I can give a positive contribution." Cullinan believes that Namibia can go on to become a strong side. "They need to play more cricket and gain more exposure by playing in different conditions around the world. They need to be exposed to outside influences and opinions to prove their skill levels. "So there are a lot of good things in place already and I am very impressed with what I have seen. They can improve by playing more games and watching other teams in the nets," he said. Cullinan is a strong supporter of Twenty20 cricket. "To play Twenty20 you need a lot of skills. It highlights the importance of skills and it has done tremendous good for players and their skills. We have seen many of the skills being carried into the 50-over game. This format is intense and so the concentration levels have to be good," he said. "Twenty20 is a format that is played quickly and you need to be pretty good all-rounder. You should have the ability to score runs in almost a 360 degree radius. This is what the best players are doing today."