By 
The Victoria Pearls secured a significant victory today by winning both encounters against the Kenya senior women’s national cricket team at the Serenity Cricket Oval in Kamengo.
These matches are part of the Kenya Women’s Tour to Uganda, aimed at preparing both teams for the upcoming ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa qualifiers to be held at the Entebbe Cricket Oval from December 7th to 18th, 2023.
The tournament’s ultimate goal is to grant two out of the eight participating teams a spot in the Globals.
the warmup series scheduled to involve all four East African nations unfortunately saw Rwanda and Tanzania withdraw for reasons undisclosed.
The series commenced yesterday, but persistent rain led to the abandonment of both games at the Serenity Oval. However, today’s matches saw thrilling performances. In the morning’s 15-over game, the Pearls batted first, led by wicket Keeper opener Kevin Awino, who notched an impressive 35 off 39 balls, staying not out, Gloria Obukor, her partner, fell victim to a run-out without scoring. Contributions from Janet Mbabazi (29 off 32) and Stephanie Nampiina (19 off 18) bolstered Uganda’s total to 87/2.
Queentor Abel got the sole wicket for Kenya and during their innings, she scored (19 off 30) making a notable contribution, supported by Vanessa Adhimabo Ooko (17 off 16) and Melvin Khagoitsa (15 off 15). Despite their efforts, Kenya was bundled out for 80 runs, giving the Victoria Pearls a 7-run victory in the first game.
In the afternoon’s second game, after winning the toss, the Pearls chose to bowl first, restricting Kenya to 67/6 in 20 overs. Janet Mbabazi excelled with the ball, claiming two wickets for 20 runs in her 4-over spell. Consylate Aweko Nimungu and Irene Alumo also secured a wicket each.
Batting-wise, Kevin Awino continued her stellar performance, contributing 19 off 22, alongside Janet Mbabazi’s 19 off 31 and immaculate Nakisuyi’s 20 off 30, guiding the Victoria Pearls to a comfortable 7-wicket victory in the second game.
These warm-up games serve as an ideal platform for the Victoria Pearls’ coaches to experiment with different combinations and solidify a competitive team ahead of the December qualifiers.
The series will resume tomorrow with a single game at the Serenity Oval, scheduled for 10:00 AM.
