Cricket: Tanzania Debut at the Women T20i Invitational in Lagos

The organising committee of the fifth edition of the Nigeria Cricket Federation Women's T20 Invitational Tournament has unveiled Tanzania to participate in the four-nation event scheduled to hold from February 23rd to March 3rd in Lagos.

Ranked 19th in the world, the Tanzania women’s team would be making their first appearance at the event that has shared its winnings so far between Nigeria and Rwanda.

Chairman of the organising committee of the tournament, Chuma Anosike, describes the Tanzanian women’s team at the event as a major achievement, stressing that they are ranked better than any of the teams participating.

“Nigeria, the host and defending champion are ranked 29th in the World, Rwanda are three steps ahead of us at 26, while Sierra Leone are 39th.

“Their inclusion raises the bar for the event, and the potential for an increased number of eyeballs that will watch the matches globally,” he said.

The event will run for eight days at the Tafawa Balewa Cricket Oval in Lagos.

The Nigerian team, the Female Yellow-Greens, have been in camp since last week and hope to put up a commanding performance at their ground to defend the event they won last year.

The coach of the team, Leke Oyede, has asked for support from the home fans, stressing that his wards would appreciate supporters coming out to cheer them on match days when the event begins.

The tournament's first ball will be on Sunday, February 25th, with Tanzania squaring off with 2022 champion Rwanda, by 10 am, before Nigeria’s encounter with her West African rivals Sierra Leone by 2:15 later in the afternoon.

Nigeria’s team will be led by long-standing captain and the most-capped female cricketer in the country, Blessing Etim.