Nigeria, little-known for its cricketing prowess, achieved a historic feat by stunning the formidable New Zealand with a two-run victory in the ICC Women’s U-19 T20 World Cup on Monday.
Batting first, Nigeria scored 65-6, putting forth an energetic display in the field that applied constant pressure on New Zealand’s run chase.
New Zealand found themselves 57-5, requiring nine runs with one over to go. However, tight bowling from Lilian Ude proved pivotal as they fell two runs short of Nigeria’s total.
While football and athletics dominate in Nigeria, cricket has not seen the same level of popularity, especially in contrast to the southern African nations like South Africa and Zimbabwe, where cricket enjoys significant support.
Nonetheless, the Nigerian girls have brought their nation into the cricketing spotlight, becoming the first West African country to qualify for a global tournament. Their victory against an ICC full member nation in Group C was a historic moment.
Making their ICC Women’s U-19 World Cup debut, Nigeria had to wait for an opportunity after their match against Samoa was abandoned due to rain on Saturday.
Persistent wet weather again threatened play in Sarawak, but Nigeria seized their chance once it was confirmed that the game would proceed, albeit with a reduced contest of 13 overs each.
In other matches, Australia defeated Bangladesh by two wickets in a tense Group D match, securing their progression to the next stage.
Meanwhile, the USA announced its presence as a World Cup contender by stunning Ireland in Johor, winning by nine wickets and improving its net run rate in Group B significantly.
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