T20i cricket: Rwanda beats Nigeria to win maiden tournament

Nigeria fell to Rwanda’s bowling prowess on Sunday in the closing game of the maiden Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) T20 invitational women’s tournament, despite beating the east Africans in the last group game of the event on Saturday.

After winning the toss, the Rwandan team chose to bat and left 129 runs on the board for the loss of five wickets in 20 overs. In the second innings, the Nigerian team struggled to put runs on the board as their wicket fell in succession to lose with 53 runs.

Uyi Akpata, NCF president, said the matches between Nigeria and Rwanda were top-notch, adding that the players gave a good account of themselves.

“It is really not an issue for us that Nigeria beat Rwanda in the group match but still lost to the Rwandans in the final. It shows a lot of improvement from our young team, especially the rate at which the three 15-year-old players in the team performed for Nigeria,” Akpata said.

“As far as we are concerned, our opening batter Lucky Piety, Lilian Ude, who won two Player of the Match awards in Nigeria’s five matches, and Peculiar Agboya, all of who are 15 years old, have justified their inclusion in the team.”

He also commended the tournament sponsors — Access Bank, Eko Electricity Distribution Company, PET Foundation, and EMR — for believing in the youth and cricket development.

Stephen Mussale, president of the Rwanda Cricket Association, described the tournament as a great show for African women’s cricket development.

“Beyond Rwanda winning this maiden tournament, I am personally delighted to see that a lot of development is going on in other African women teams,” Musaale said.

Meanwhile, the NCF has confirmed that the T20i will become an annual event where top female cricket teams in Africa will be invited to Nigeria.