Sports

Botswana in solid qualifiers start

Mqondisi Dube | Tuesday May 26, 2026 09:58

Botswana cricket team registered a third victory in as many matches in the ongoing T20 World Cup qualifiers after thrashing Cameroon yesterday.PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO
 
Botswana cricket team registered a third victory in as many matches in the ongoing T20 World Cup qualifiers after thrashing Cameroon yesterday.PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO

The ICC Men's T20 World Cup Sub Regional Africa Qualifier A has seen top competition since kick-off on Saturday. Seven nations are competing for the two available slots, to progress to the next round of the qualifiers.

Botswana has been joined by Cameroon, Rwanda, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Sierra Leone and Mali.

Rwanda and Botswana have set the early pace, leading with maximum points from their three games. The hosts beat Sierra Leone by 70 runs in their opening match on Saturday and then followed it up with a 10wicket demolition of Mali on Sunday.

After three days of play, boys are fast being separated from men, with Rwanda, Botswana and Kenya raising their hands in the fight for the two slots.

Rwanda has already taken a firm step towards qualification after beating Kenya, former permanent International Test Cricket One Day International member.

In a close contest yesterday, Rwanda won the psychological battle, edging out the fellow East Africans by two wickets.

Botswana's path has been smoother thus far, as they have faced the tournament's lightweights. True to ranking, Botswana has delivered against the minnows but their test arrives on Friday and Saturday when they face Kenya and Rwanda respectively.

Before then, Botswana face Ivory Coast as the race heats up. Coach Stanley Timoni and the side's captain, Karabo Montlanka have emphasised the need for consistency without putting the team under pressure.

'A solid start just as we had wanted from the group. We look forward to a couple of days to regroup and plan for the coming days, but so far we are happy with our execution and we are hoping some rest can help us find another gear in the remaining matches,' Montlhanka said yesterday.

The top two sides in the tournament will advance to the regional final, where they will be joined by Namibia who were given a bye after having participated in the previous T20 World Cup. Four other teams from sub-regional qualifiers B and C will join them in the finals.