Nigeria’s male senior cricket team, the Yellow Greens, will hope to end 2024 on a high when they face Uganda in the final of the ILT20 Cup in Rwanda on Saturday (today), PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The Yellow Greens sealed their spot in today’s final with a 37-run win over hosts Rwanda in their last group game on Friday, ending that phase in second place with eight points.
Nigeria won the toss against Rwanda and elected to bat first, posting 151 runs for the loss of eight wickets in 20 overs while their hosts couldn’t keep up the chase in the second innings, producing 114 runs for the loss of seven wickets.
Reaching today’s final has been a tough task for Nigeria having suffered five consecutive defeats before bouncing back in their last two games. They produced a thrilling 10-wicket win in five overs against Botswana on Thursday before grabbing their fourth win of the tournament against Rwanda on Friday.
Nigeria’s resurgence in their last two games also produced historic moments for two of their players, Sulaimon Runsewe and Isaac Okpe.
On Thursday, Runseswe reached 1,000 T20i runs for Nigeria in his 53rd game for the country while Okpe also reached an incredible 60 T20i wickets in 60 innings for Nigeria.
To stand a chance of picking the piece of silverware at the tournament, they will need to work twice as hard against Uganda who have been unbeaten in nine group stage games. They also beat the Yellow Greens thrice during the group stages.
