Rwanda continued their winning run at the ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup Africa Qualifier Division 2 with a 49-run victory over Sierra Leone at RP Kigali Oval on Monday. Batting first, the hosts were bowled out for 302 in 48.5 overs, with captain Jasper Nziza leading the way with a composed 51 off 43 balls. Jean Paul Rukundo added a valuable 45 off 41 balls, while Eric Hagenimana scored 42 off 50 balls before making his mark with the ball, claiming three wickets. Sierra Leone mounted a determined chase and reached 253 before being bowled out in 50 overs, but Rwanda’s bowling attack held firm in the closing stages to secure a second consecutive victory. The visitors’ standout performer was Ibrahim Koffie Bangura, who scored his maiden international century, making 102 off 106 balls, including 11 fours. Captain Charles Kamara also contributed 55 off 51 balls, hitting 10 fours. ALSO READ: Rwanda crush Mozambique to open U19 World Cup qualifying run in style For Rwanda head coach Kenneth Bugingo, the team’s batting performance was the key difference in the victory. “The batters played all 50 overs. That’s why I think the openers did well. The middle order and the tail-enders also contributed, with players at No. 7 and No. 8 making important runs in the final 10 overs. That was an outstanding performance from the boys,” Bugingo said. He also praised captain Jasper Nziza for leading by example. “He batted well, leading from the front. Jasper played well. That’s the major thing as a captain. When you’re leading from the front, it motivates even the players you’re leading,” he added. The victory marked Rwanda’s second of the tournament, giving the hosts a strong start ahead of their rest day. Bugingo said the break would provide an important opportunity to analyse their next opponents and fine-tune their preparations for the remaining matches. “On this rest day, we are going to sit and reflect. We will go through videos of our opponents so that we can analyse them and come up with serious plans,” he said. The coach added that the two victories had also lifted morale within the squad. “The boys are now going with two wins. It boosts and motivates them. The morale is there in the camp,” Bugingo said. Sierra Leone take positives despite defeat Sierra Leone suffered their second defeat of the tournament, but head coach Sylvester Mutusva believes there were encouraging signs from his young side. Of the 14 players in his squad, Mutusva said 10 are competing in an international tournament for the first time. “There are a lot of positives from the team. Looking at my squad of 14, I have 10 new players who are playing in an international tournament for the first time. They’ve never played at this level before,” he said. The biggest positive came from Ibrahim Koffie Bangura, who scored his maiden international century. “It feels very good. It’s a dream come true. I made my first century in an international competition,” Bangura said. Despite his individual achievement, the young batter admitted Sierra Leone were disappointed not to secure their first victory. “We did our best to get the win today, but unfortunately our bowling was not good. I think we need to improve it for our next game,” he said. Bangura remains confident that Sierra Leone can still challenge for qualification. “We still have our chance to qualify, so we’re going to work hard because everything is possible in cricket.” Mutusva also refused to rule out a comeback, insisting the tournament remains wide open. “With the three matches that are left for us, we’ll try by all means to compete and make sure the boys apply what they have learned from these two matches,” he said. “It’s still early days to say we are out. Anything can happen in a game of cricket.” For Rwanda, the victory keeps their qualification campaign on track, while Sierra Leone will look to turn the lessons from their opening matches into their first win of the tournament.
