Uganda’s Cricket Cranes clinched yet another victory at the Pearls of Africa T20 Series as they comfortably dispatched Kenya by six wickets on the match day 5.
The Friday result at the Lakeside Oval, Entebbe, made it five Consecutive victories on the bounce for the Cricket Cranes as they secured their place ready for the final day Sunday.
Uganda captain Juma Miyaji won the toss and elected to Bowling first and restricted the Kenyans to just 124 runs, losing eight wickets in 20 overs. Cosmas Kyewuta and Juma Miyaji took two wickets each, while Frank Nsubuga, Dinesh Nakrani, and Alpesh Ramjani chipped in with one a piece.
Miyaji’s early spell was especially sharp, removing Pushkar Sharma and Tanzeel Sheikh.
Rakep Patel top-scored for Kenya with 37 off 36 balls, but regular wickets and tight fielding including a key run-out of Gondaria (18), Jasraj Kundi (15) and Lucas Ndandason (14) contributed to the total with double-figure scores.
Uganda chased down the target of 125 runs from 20 overs to win. Juma Miyaji was the top scored for Uganda with (37) while Kyewuta Cosmas scored (25).
The chase was far from smooth for the Cricket Cranes. After getting 12 off the second over, Robinson Obuya (17) was caught in the deep by Viraj Patel in the subsequent over.
With 30 runs required from the final 4 overs and minor nerves creeping in among the home fans, coach Abhay Sharma promoted captain Miyaji up the order to finish the job emphatically, smashing an unbeaten 18 off just 7 balls, including two boundaries and a towering six, to seal victory with 11 balls to spare.
He was ably supported by all-rounder Dinesh Nakrani, who was named Player of the Match for his composed 23* off 20 balls alongside a tidy bowling spell of 1/18 in 4 overs.
Speaking after the match, Captain Juma Miyaji emphasized the team’s focus ahead of Sunday’s final showdown:
“We treated today’s game as a final because we wanted to stay in charge of our own fate. We knew Kenya wouldn’t be easy but the boys showed great character. Against UAE on Sunday, we want to keep ticking our boxes, play with freedom, and hopefully win the title for Uganda.”
The cricket Cranes now turn their focus to their final game against UAE, set to take place later on Sunday afternoon at the same venue.
