Rwanda national women cricket team captain Marie Diane Bimenyimana is excited after the team defeated Nigeria in the final to clinch the Nigeria women T20 Invitational cricket tournament in Lagos last weekend. Rwanda on Sunday, April 3, beat Nigeria by 52 runs just a day after they were defeated by the same opponent in the final group match by 3 runs. The final match at the Tafawa Balewa Square Cricket Oval saw Rwanda win the toss and choose to bat first. They scored 129 runs for the loss of five in 20 overs to finish the first innings on a high. The score was too tough for Nigeria to chase down as their wickets fell in quick succession and they scored just 76 runs, all in 17.1 overs to surrender the trophy to Nhamburo’s girls. On their arrival at Kigali International Airport on Monday night, an excited Bimenyimana said that teamwork helped her tea win the tournament, by especially beating the team that beat them during the group matches despite playing at home. “We had one common mission which was to win the tournament. We worked as a team, game by game, as the coach told us and here are the results,” she said. “We are so excited to have made the country proud. The victory is a motivation for us. We now know our level of performance and where we need to improve,” she added. During the defeat, Nhamburo explained that he introduced a young and inexperienced squad in the game as he looked to help build their mentality for them to gain experience from playing international tournaments. “When you look at the squad we used in the defeat against Nigeria, there were young players from the U19 national team that I was trying to introduce in the senior national team. But when I used our senior squad in the final, we beat them and won the tournament,” he said. “I am happy for my team; they improved in every game. I am actually happy about their performance and I am looking forward to more from them,” he said. The Zimbabwean coach said the games played in Nigeria have helped him evaluate the level of performance of his side and which departments he needs to improve for him to prepare well for the forthcoming Kwibuka Women’s T20 tournament. “The tournament has come at the right time for us to prepare well for the Kwibuka Tournament,” he said.
