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The Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) has announced the readiness of both the national Under-19 teams (boys and girls) to participate in the World Cup qualifiers scheduled from July 31 to August 19.
According to Emeka Igwilo, the federation’s CEO, in a statement provided to Completesports.com, the men’s team will begin their quest to secure one of the two available tickets for the U-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup African Qualifiers Division 2.
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He added that the men’s team qualifiers will begin this week in Tanzania.
“Our performance in this phase in 2019 earned us our first ticket to the World Cup and since then, this phase has put us in the spotlight. We are relying on the coaching staff’s experience and hard work to advance to the next phase,” Igwilo said.
Igwilo also said the board had reappointed Daniel Gim as coach of the Under-19 men’s team, hoping that he would leverage his experience to deliver results for the country.
“The team has been in camp for weeks and we are optimistic that this preparation will benefit them in their tournaments, which will take place from July 31 to August 14 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania,” he added.
The U-19 women’s team, comprising around eight members of the women’s national team, is set for a single-tier World Cup qualifier in Kigali, Rwanda, from August 19-31.
Igwilo stressed that apart from a new technical team handling the teenagers, he believes the inclusion of experienced players who helped the country secure a bronze medal at the African Games in Accra, Ghana, raises hopes of a good performance.
“These young people represent the future of the game in Nigeria. The board prioritises grassroots engagement across the country and we understand that for the game to progress, we must continue to invest in development activities, facility development and continuous upgrading of the skills of our staff,” he said.
The senior men’s national team recently completed a bilateral series with Kenya, in which they played five T20 matches and two 50-overs matches. They lost 3-2 in the T20 series and all 50-overs matches.
“The Nigerian teams have been busy preparing for the challenges ahead and we are pleased with the lessons we are learning and the adjustments we are making,” Igwilo said.
The men’s national team will participate in a Division 2 World Cup qualifier in Nigeria at the end of November.
By Dotun Omisakin
