Tag: cricket

Blessing Etim is not Nigeria’s first national cricket female team’s captain, but she has made more marks than many of  her  predecessors  as she continues to champion campaigns to position the female national team as one of the best on the continent, writes SAMUEL EMEHELU

To the uninitiated, Blessing Etim announcing her retirement right after the bronze-bearing campaign of the national team at the just concluded African Games in Ghana was  another rite for  a sporting  girl-child  to wind down for another phase of her life.

But this particular Etim is not  just an ordinary  cricketer but   women’s captain of Nigeria’s national team.

Before  announcing her retirement  in Ghana, she had led the team to their most ambitious outing, when against reasoning and International Cricket Council ranking order,  they had hoped against all expectations to pick a medal in a competition that had Africa’s finest team.

The  event featured South Africa, Nigeria, Tanzania, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Kenya, and Rwanda, placed in two groups.

Nigeria was placed in Group A, with South Africa, Tanzania, and Namibia from where they finished as second best at the expense of highly-rated Namibia and  Tanzania.

The female  Yellow-Green as the  national team is called, was never in dispute of showing some spark at the event, but as the lowest ranked of all the eight teams at the Games, shoving aside bigger teams for a place in the top four gave Etim’s side a second look.

A couple of days after leading Nigeria to their historic Bronze medal triumph in the Women’s African Games by stunning Uganda by three wickets in the final on 13th  March,  skipper Etim had formally  announced her retirement from Internal cricket.

Etim has  indeed played a crucial role in the rise of Women’s cricket in Nigeria. She was a part of the first-ever group of female cricketers in the country when she received her maiden call-up to the side in the year 2011. 

However, she made her international debut on 26th  January 2019 in a T20I against Rwanda. She then went on to play 63 matches for Nigeria and scored 638 runs at a strike rate of 75.77 and an average of 13.86 in 57 innings.

Her best performance with the bat for Nigeria came on 4th September 2019 when she scored an unbeaten half-century (50 off 48 balls) against Rwanda. She played her 50th Match for Nigeria on 10th December 2023 against Namibia in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Region Qualifier. 

Apart from her exploits with the bat, she has also picked up 25 wickets with the ball at a strike rate of 24.4 an average of 21.56, and an economy of 5.29 in 31 innings. Her best performance with the ball came on 13th September 2021 when she returned with exceptional match figures (4-4-0-4) with the ball against Cameroon in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Region Qualifier.

Read Also: UNIBEN Cricket Club wins Edo League in style

In  her exceptional spell, she created multiple records including  the best bowling figures (4-4-0-4), having the best economy rate as she did not even conceded a single run in her spell, and bowling the most number of maidens (4) in an innings in the T20I format.

She led the Nigerian women’s cricket team to a title in the 2023 edition of the Nigeria Cricket Federation Women’s T20I tournament by defeating Rwanda in the final by nine-run.

She is perhaps the most resourceful female cricket Nigeria has ever seen. Her life revolves around the game.

For instance, when she is not in the national team, she is in Uyo ( Akwa Ibom S), coaching, both male and female cricket prospects. She is one of the few national players who draws a monthly salary from the federation for being part of its development officers. This is despite being fully a national team player.

Nigeria’s Female Yellow Greens rose from their 49 runs defeat to Tanzania on Match Day 2 of the ongoing NCF Women’s T20i Invitational Tournament to hand Rwanda Women’s team a five-wicket defeat yesterday  at the Tafawa Balewa Cricket Oval in Lagos.

Captain Blessing Etim won the toss and chose to field, leaving Marie Diane of Rwanda and her teammates to bat first.

A miss-fielding in the first over gave Nigeria a shaky start. However, the girls picked up form when teenage star, Shola Adekunle sparked a deadly bowling squad against Rwanda.

The 16-year-old  Shola took 4 wickets with precision, and Peculiar Agboya and Favour Eseigbe grabbed 3 and 2 wickets respectively. The shock kept Rwanda’s total runs at 95 and lost 9 wickets in 20 overs (95/9).

The second-inning chase for Nigeria started on a good note when Assistant Captain Favour Eseigbe and Esther Sandy soaked the pressure poured out in revenge by Rwanda. Favour and Esther’s partnership gave Nigeria 58 runs, before Esther’s wicket fell. 

Read Also: Nigeria, Rwanda  in winning starts at Women T20i Cricket

Rwanda saw an opportunity to tighten the screw and soon pressure shifted to Nigeria with 4 successive falls of wickets (Esther Sandy at 11.4, Agboya Peculiar at 12.2, Etim Blessing at 12.4, and Piety Lucky at 14.4).

It took the pair of Salome Sunday and Christabel Chukwuonye to stabilize the team and drive them to the needed five wickets victory. Nigeria finished at 99/5 win, with Shola Adekunle pocketing the N150,000 prize for the Player of the Match award.

Nigeria’s coach, Leke Oyede, said the team’s bench has taken their learning from the victories, and also from the loss.

 “The event is good for us, and is helping us make tweaks here and there, which I believe is good as we progress and prepare for crucial events ahead.”

Tanzania also picked their second win at the event with a 98-run victory over Sierra Leone  yesterday, and leaves the West African visiting team as the only team without a win so far.

Matches resume today  with Tanzania and Rwanda locking horns at 10:15am while Nigeria takes on Sierra Leone for size.

Defending champion of the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) Women’s T20 Invitational Tournament, Nigeria’s Senior Female team began their title defense with a 54-run win over Sierra Leonean  Women’s team on Sunday, at the Tafawa Balewa cricket oval in Lagos.

Nigeria had elected to bat after winning the toss, and set a 137 run (for the loss of two wickets) hurdle for the Sierra Leonean side in their innings. Favour Eseigbe, contributed 44 runs from 48 balls, while Peculiar Agboya and Esther Sandy left 33 and 30 balls apiece in the inning.

In the second inning, Ann-Marie Monica Kamara and Janet Kowa pulled in 22 and 21 runs respectively in a bid to chase the score the rampart Nigerian side had left before eventually capitulating, with eight wickets felled.

President of the Nigeria Cricket Federation, Uyi Akpata,  said that the event  was part of the numerous avenues that the Nigeria Cricket Federation has designed to promote the game, and it is pleasing to see rising international interest around the tournament.

 “The Nigeria Cricket Federation Women T20 Invitational Tournament has been on the rise, and the quality of games has helped Nigeria gain prominence as we now rank 29th in the world, down from the 38th that we occupied as recently as 2021.”

According to him, the win over Sierra Leone on Sunday also speaks to the level of investment and work that the board and technical team have put into the team and developmental efforts.

Read Also: 65 CSOs pull out from planned Labour’s nationwide protest

 “Nigeria has practically ridden on the performances and exposures that events like this have provided to become a force in Female Cricket on the continent,” he said.

Earlier in the day Rwanda had brushed aside the threat of a higher ranking Tanzania to hold them to a 33-run win.

With a batting effort of Uwase Merveille (33 runs), and the bowling prowess of Ishimwe Henriette and Irera Rosine (three wickets each), Rwanda checked Tanzania’s potential for overturning their first inning’s 119 runs, by leaving them at 86 all out.

Nigeria’s next match is against Tanzania  today(February 26) at 10:15 am, while Rwanda’s encounter with Sierra Leone is scheduled for 2:15 pm.

The organizing committee of the fifth Nigeria Cricket Federation Women’s T20 Invitational Tournament has unveiled Tanzania  as  one of the  participants  in the Four-nation event scheduled to hold between February 23rd  and  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.

Chuma Anosike, the Chairman of the organising committee for the event , said the Tanzanian Women’s team at the event is a major achievement, given that they are ranked better than any of the teams participating.

 “Nigeria, the host and defending champion is ranked 29th in the World, Rwanda is three steps ahead of us at 26, while Sierra Leone is at 39. 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 Nigeria team, the Female Yellow-Greens, has been in camp since last week and hopes to put up a commanding performance at their ground to defend the event they won last year.

Read Also: South-South defends  titles  at PwC Under-17 Cricket

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

 “We are doing our best to prepare. I believe we have a better team now because most of the players have had ample playing time between last year and now. This includes international exposure and the recently concluded South-South Female League, most players took part. Our hard work and the support of home fans will go a long way,” he said.

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 rival Sierra Leone by 2:15 later in the afternoon.

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

The fifth edition of the NCF/PwC National Under-17 Championship wrapped up  at the twin Ovals of the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja, with the teenagers  from South-South region sweeping honours at the event.

Like the previous editions, the boys and girls teams from the region  went unbeaten at the national finals and retained their tittles for each class on Sunday.

Theophilus Ibodeme, the coach of the boys’ team, said that the team winning was not a coincidence but a result of the depth of cricket development in the region.

“By the grace of God Almighty, we are glad to have won again, and this time, it feels special because many of the teams have really stepped up their game, and it was a tough event full of different tactics. For the South-South teams. This means that we have to dig deeper technically going forward if we have to retain our winning edge in the region,” he said.

Representing PriceWaterHouseCoopers, Tolu Adeleke, a partner at the firm, said that the event has lived up to the expectations of his firm as a tool to galvanize the country and also empower girls.

“We are very glad that the Nigeria Cricket Federation has sustained the values that piqued our interest in this project; the fact that the event has even been elevated to become the nursery that produces our national team players is very encouraging,” he said.

Team South-West was another team that threw everything at the event this year, and their effort earned them runner-up places at both the boys and girls events.

Joseph Omonkhobhio and Joy Osazuwa were the Most Valuable Players, boys and girls, respectively. The two players are from the winning South-South teams.

Chika Okoro, a member of the Nigeria Cricket Federation Board, applauded PwC for their long-standing relationship with the Federation and also the Sports Minister for his interest and support in cricket through encouragement so far.

Read Also: Tinubu appoints former NYSC D-G, others to tackle social vices in tertiary institutions

He alluded to the gains being recorded by the Federation on the continent as a result of the major grassroots efforts of the men and women deployed to coach the game in different states and the support of sponsors like PwC.

The 2024 PwC National Under-17 Championship featured entries from 34 of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital City, of which Chika Okoro said it’s the largest in terms of national coverage.

“This very edition has shown that one sport can unite the country. And with 34 states and eighty percent of our participants representing the female gender, I believe we have made a point for unity through cricket.”

Idia Royals Female Cricket Club (CC) of Benin defeated Smashers CC of Uyo by seven wickets to win the 2024 South-South Female Cricket League in Benin City yesterday.

National team player, Favour Eseigbe led Idia Royals to beat Pathfinders Cricket Club in the first Semi-final of the Super Four series on Saturday by one run to secure a spot in the finals whole Smashers CC also subdued Adolo Amazon to get the second ticket for the dramatic finals.

Vice Chairman of Edo State Cricket Association, Barrister Abraham Oviawe said the emergence of a new winner of the event shows the level of competitiveness that the event has attracted.

 “It is very impressive to see the quality of talent that this event has unearthed in just three editions. Many of the teams now work hard to develop their players and not depend on the established names.”

Read Also: Obaseki to grace Cricket Super Four in Benin

The first two edition winners were Ekpoma Supernovas and Smashers Cricket Club respectively.

Smashers CC’s Salome Sunday won the batter of the series with 47 runs in the Super Four, while Unwana Moses of Pathfinder was the bowler of the series. Esther Sandy also of Smashers was named the fielder of the series while Piety Lucky was awarded the Most Valuable Player of the series.

Eight teams took part in the third edition of the South-South Female Cricket League with four teams qualifying for the Super Four phase of the league.

Uyi Akpata, Chairman of the Edo State Cricket Association, who also doubles as the President of team Nigeria Cricket Federation has said the league which is the only female Cricket League in North-West Africa has been one of the key elements driving the development of Female Cricket on continent.

 “The league is one of the major events. We appreciate all the support from the government and coaches that make it work. This league holds the key to our development,” he concluded.

The Nigeria Cricket Federation has announced that 58 teams have entered to participate in the fifth edition of the PwC National Under-17 Cricket Championship, with regional elimination rounds set for January 20th .

The General Manager of the Federation, Emeka Igwilo, has informed that the fifth edition of the event has attracted more participation than expected, as the event continues to be one of the core events for the grassroots development effort.

 “This year, twenty-five states have registered girls’ teams, while thirty-three boys’ teams are coming from the states for the scheduled zonal eliminations that are expected to run between January 20th  and 28th , 2024.”

Igwilo said that the zonal elimination will take place across six regions of the country simultaneously and is expected to produce the regional finalists that will feature in the finals of this year’s event later in February in Abuja.

 “One of the key things that this event has achieved for us is the continual supply of grassroots talent that eventually fills the national team’s spot. It also compliments all the efforts of our development officers across the country,” he added.

Read Also: Chelsea to break bank to sign Osimhen

In total, 812 players will be taking part in the regional elimination championship, which, among other things, raises the impact of the game across the country.

Obioma Ubah, Partner and Corporate Responsibility Leader at PwC Nigeria, the title sponsors of the championship, said that the firm’s involvement in developmental Cricket over the last five years has created an important avenue for the expression and promotion of such values as teamwork, leadership, and a deep sense of nationalism among the youth of Nigeria.

 “We are impressed with our partnership with the Cricket Federation in the organisation of this championship. One success story is the fact that the event is one of the few with the highest gender inclusion percentage. In the last four years, eighty percent of the participants have been girls. If you consider the national outlook of the event and the demography that it caters to, you will see the point of alignment with our values as a firm.”

Obioma noted that the event is one of the ways PwC Nigeria is bringing her purpose to life and making sustainable impact on a national scale.

The finals of the event has been scheduled to round off at a national finals to hold between  February 7th  and  11th  at the twin oval of the MKO Abiola National Stadium in Abuja.