Eddie Norfolk
Kenya has a priority assignment in the ICC Africa Twenty20 Championship before meeting Canada in Dubai during March in ODI, T20 and the ICC Interncontinental Cup. The Africa Twenty20 Championship event begins on February 23, 2013 in Uganda and continues until March 1. The top two teams in the Africa regional event will progress to the next phase of the qualifying ladder in the ICC World Twenty20 structure. Namibia is already seeded into that next phase. Kenya’s opposition in the Africa Championship comprises Uganda, Nigeria, Tanzania and Botswana. Each team will play two matches against each of the other four teams in round-robin action.
The Africa’s event will be important for Kenya, a side that has lost the tag of top Associate since winning the inaural ICC Global World Cricket League in 2007, following success in the reaching the semi-finals of the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup in South Africa. In December 2012 Jackie Janmohammed was elected unopposed as Chairperson of Cricket Kenya. Samir Inamdar stepped aside after seven years at the helm.
There is a six-team East African league operating with separate 50-over and T20 competitions that embraces leading Kenyan and Ugandan players. The East Africa Premier League competition is the T20 event and was won by Rwenzori Warriors in 2012. Rwenzori won four games and tied one game to top the standings. The tie came against Kanbis Tigers who ended with three wins, a loss and that one tie. In the T20 Final Kongonis made 119 for six wickets (20 overs) which Rwenzori overtook with four balls to spare. Rwenzori scoring 120 for seven wickets (19.2 overs)
Coast Pekee captured the 50-over East Africa Cup in 2012. Both Coast Pekee and Rwenzori Warriors had 4 wins and 1 loss in the round-robin standings. In the East Africa Cup Final, Rwenzori made 230 all out in 47.1 overs. Uganda’s Roger Mukara lead the innings with 70 and Kenyan veteran Steve Tikolo made 40. Jignesh Patel took four wickets for 20 runs. Irfan Karim made 82, Maurice Ouma 60 and Tanmay Mishra 35 as Coast Pekee talled 221 for three wickets in 46.3 overs, to win by seven wickets. Karim, Ouman and Mishra are all in the Kenyan squad for the Africa T20 tournament.
The other three teams in these East Africa competitions were Rift Valley Rinos, Nile Knights and Kongonis, who included Collins Obuya and Alex Obanda in 2012.
This past weekend there was an unsanctioned, as far as reports seem to indicate, “Cricket Wars” tournament in Nairobi that, according to some sources, brought in some reasonable crowds and memories of past days of glory for Kenyan cricket. Eight teams, each representing a separate sponsor participated.
After this Africa’s T20 Championship, Kenya will meet Canada in Dubai ICC World Cricket League 50-over matches on March 11 and 13, followed by T20 games on March 15 and 16, concluding with the ICC Intercontinental Cup four-day first-class match set for March 18-21.
Canada faces Ireland in warm-up action on March 8-9 in Dubai.
It does seem a bit strange that Namibia does not play in the Africas Championship, as it denies a chance of being ICC Regional Champions due to previous sucess. But that’s the way it is.
Kenya Squad for the ICC Africa Twenty20 Championship: Collins Obuya (Captain), Ragheb Aga, Alex Obanda, Irfan Karim, Dominic Wesonga, Tanmay Mishra, Rakep Patel, Maurice Ouma, Nelson Odhiambo, Nehemiah Odhiambo, Lucas Oluoch, Hiren Varaiya, Emmanuel Bundi, James Ngoche. Head Coach: Robin Brown.
Canada Squad for the March 2013 matches in Dubai: Jimmy Hansra (Captain – Intercontinental Cup games), Rizwan Cheema (Captain World Cricket League games), Hiral Patel, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Damodar Daesrath, Junaid Siddiqui, Manny Aulakh, Henry Osinde, Nitish Kumar, Jeremy Gordon, Raza-ur-Rehman, Nikhil Dutta, Usman Limbada and Hamza Tariq. Head Coach: Gus Logie.