The Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) Invitational T20I tournament concluded Sunday evening at the Tafawa Balewa Square Cricket Oval in Lagos.
Tanzania emerged champions with a perfect record, accumulating 10 points, while Nigeria, the former champions, secured second place ahead of Rwanda and Sierra Leone.
Final day action
Having secured their top position with a decisive 65-run win over Nigeria on Saturday, Tanzania solidified their dominance by defeating Sierra Leone by 90 runs in their final match, cementing their position as the tournament champions.
The day’s highlight was the crucial match between Nigeria and Rwanda, which determined the runner-up position. Nigeria, buoyed by their previous victory over Rwanda, emerged victorious once again, securing second place.
Despite their prior loss to Tanzania, Nigeria remained determined to secure second place. Captain Blessing Etim won the toss and elected to bat first against Rwanda.
Nigeria’s batting started shakily, losing their first wicket in the first over. The struggle to build momentum continued, with wickets falling sporadically throughout the innings.
However, they managed to reach a final score of 110 runs, thanks to contributions from Lucky Piety (28 runs) and Sarah Ekwere who pushed the score past 100 runs.
In response, Rwanda’s chase faltered, failing to reach the target set by Nigeria and ultimately falling short of a century within their 20 overs.
Individual standouts
The tournament saw several individual performances shine.
Tanzania trio Saumu Mtae, Hudaa Omary, and Perice Kumanya dominated the batting charts, exceeding 100 runs each.
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Mtae led the pack with 203 runs, followed by Omary (155 runs) and Kumanya (113 runs).
While Nigeria couldn’t match Tanzania’s dominance in batting, Esiegbe Favour and Esther Sandy secured the fourth and fifth positions in the overall run-scorers list, accumulating 112 and 106 runs respectively.
Nigeria’s Adekunle Adeshola emerged as the team’s leading wicket-taker with 10 wickets, though he couldn’t surpass the higher tallies of Tanzanian and Rwandan bowlers.
Overall, the NCF Invitational tournament showcased exciting matches and individual brilliance, with Tanzania taking the crown and Nigeria securing a commendable second-place finish.
The next stop for the teams is the African Games in Ghana.
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