The much-anticipated inaugural T20 Women’s Day Cup was played on 8 March 2025, to the delight of many, especially the women in cricket, who have been hoping and waiting for a tournament like this for some time.
The week-long round-robin tourney amongst four nations; Nepal, Namibia, Hong Kong China and hosts Uganda played at the beautiful Entebbe Cricket Oval and set in such a way that all four nations get game time each day; has served fans both good cricket and entertaining action in the first 3 days during the first round.
Day 1 – Victory for the Victoria Pearls and DLS result
The first day started on high for Uganda’s Victoria Pearls and Namibia’s Capricorn Eagles who managed to register wins in their opening games. They defeated Hong Kong China and Nepal respectively.
Uganda against Hong Kong China was the first fixture with the Victoria Pearls winning the toss and electing to bowl first. A good choice for them, you would say, because they managed to limit Hong Kong China to 75/4, a score they chased comfortably winning with 16 balls to spare.
That score could have even been lower if only the Pearls did not have a lot of missed catches and poor fielding decisions. Uganda’s bowling was decent as usual, with the team only giving out 5 extras. Immaculate Nakisuuyi 2/11, captain Janet Mbabazi 1/16 and Sarah Walaza 1/19 picked wickets as Consy Aweko and Patricia Malemikia did the most to keep the opponent at bay with Malemikia getting 2 maiden overs during her bowling spell.
On strike, Hong Kong China’s anchors were the captain Natasha Miles 32 (49), Maryam Bibi 12(14) and Chan Ka Ying 10(18) who made the most contribution to their score with the other batters, all posting single-digit runs.
For the second innings, Uganda just built on their momentum; only needing four batters Immaculate Nakisuuyi 26 (35), Malisa Ariokot 17 (22) not out, Proscovia Alako 15 (22) not out and Mbabazi 12 (27) to get them to victory with 16 balls to spare. The team scored 78/2 in 17.2 overs.
Hong Kong China was decent with the ball having minimal mishaps, though they were guilty of giving out 8 extras, 3 more than the Ugandan side. However, with the side’s good bowling, if they had set a much higher score maybe, they would have claimed victory, but we will never know. Mahekdeep Kaur 1/18 and Chan Ka Man 1/19 picked wickets for their side as Iqar Sahar had a maiden over in her spell.
Final score: Hong Kong China 75/4 Uganda 78/2; Uganda won by 8 wickets.
In the second game Nepal and Namibia played out reduced overs after the skies opened causing the teams to lose about 5 overs. Nepal won the toss and chose to bat first putting on 92 runs all out within the allotted 20 overs. Samjhana Kumari Khadka 18 (11), Ishwori Bist 17(14) not out, Kabita Joshi 16(31) and Puja Mahato 13 (20) scored in double digits. Opener Rubina Chhetry and tail-ender Rachana Kumari left the crease without troubling the scorers. Namibia’s bowling was starred by Mekelaye Mwatile 3/12, Wilka Mwatile 3/17 and Kayleen Ann Green 2/15.
The defence started quite decent for the Nepalese side who picked up a wicket in the power play and did the most to keep the Namibian batters contained for a bit. However, as the side was building momentum, in the 8th over rain started bringing play to a pause for a while. When the sides returned to continue play, the DLS revised target was 71 and reduced overs, it was the battle of who gets to the 15th with the best advantage and Namibian batters rose to the occasion hitting the target in 14.5 overs. Mekelaye Mwatile 26 (35) and Arrasta Diergaardt 13(7) not out holding fort for the team. Nepal got 3 more wickets in the return after the rain, but they were not enough to stop the determined Namibian side who won by 6 wickets (DLS). Puja Mahato, Kabita Joshi, Ishwori Bist and Captain Indu Barma picked a wicket each.
Final score: Nepal 92/10 Namibia 71/4 in 14.5 overs; Namibia won by 6 wickets (DLS)
Day 2 – Underdogs stun higher-ranked teams
Day two of the tournament has been the most amazing to watch so far because the lower-ranked teams, Nepal and Hong Kong China, gave fans a David and Goliath moment as they overcame higher-ranked Uganda and Namibia respectively in dramatic fashion.
Uganda took on Nepal first in the morning losing the toss and sent in to bat first. The side’s batting campaign started with skipper Janet Mbabazi going for a duck on the first ball but Immaculate Nakisuuyi 22 (40), Stephanie Nampiina 14 (25) and Malisa Ariokot 11 (24) held the fort with the other 4 who contributed 19 runs all together to get Uganda a total of 75/7 in the 20 overs. Nepalese bowlers Puja Mahato 3/14 and Captain Indu Barma 2/8 wrecked havok for the Ugandans.
In the defence, Uganda’s bowlers faced a resilient Nepalese side from the onset struggling to break through the partnerships. Though they dismissed opener Sana Praveen early, the other batters kept runs coming as they rotated strike. In the 11th Over, Uganda got another wicket followed by 7 more wickets by the 19th over the score standing at 70/9. Nepal needed 6 runs from 6 balls to win and Uganda a wicket to win. This cliffhanger over had the whole oval on their feet as they watched each delivery intently. Bowled by Sarah Walaza, she had a dot ball, conceded 3 runs in the next two balls, another dot, the last ball would have levelled the score to force a super over, however, Walaza and Nampiina had some miscommunication fumbling a run out chance for batters Ishwori Bist and Riya Sharma giving them a chance to complete a 3 run spell giving Nepal a 1 run win. Sana Praveen 17(36), Puja Mahato 16 (29) and Rubina Chhetry 10(10) did the most with the bat; Janet Mbabazi 3/18 Sarah Walaza 2/11 came in hot with the ball, but their efforts were not enough.
Final Score: Uganda 75/7 Nepal 76/9 in 19.5 Overs: Nepal won by 1 Wicket
The second game between Namibia and Hong Kong China; produced some of the tournament milestones; the first 6s in the event and the first 100 total score. Namibia won the toss and elected to bat first with Suné Wittmann 16 (22) the skipper, Mekelaye Mwatile 15 (29), Yasmeen Khan 35 (33) and Arrasta Diergaardt not out 20 (24) putting in a good shift with the bat against the good bowling attack of Mariko Hill 2/9, Chan Ka Ying 2/13 and Chan Ka Man 1/8 to finish on 112/6.
In the chase, Hong Kong China had the up-hill task of chasing the score on a slow wicket, which forced the batters to look deep into their abilities to produce some runs. The captain Natasha Miles led the charge with 40 (42) followed by Maryam Bibi 30 (19) and Mariko Hill 22 (26), the other batters falling before they could make an impact.
However, to win the game the charge came down to Maryam Bibi who was on strike for the last 6 balls facing Namibia’s Saima Tuhadeleni. Hong Kong China at 103/6 and needing 10 runs from 6 balls with Maryam Bibi and Siu Mei Wai batting, it looked like an impossible task but lo and behold, Bibi only needed two balls to produce a result, hitting 2 maximums to produce 12 runs, giving Hong Kong China a 4 wicket win with 4 balls to spare. Mekelaye Mwatile 2/17, Wilka Mwatile, Arrasta Diergaardt and Saima Tuhadeleni all with a wicket were impactful for Namibia’s bowling though the results didn’t go their way.
Final Score: Namibia 112/6 Hong Kong China 115/6 in 19.2 overs; Hong Kong China won by 4 wickets
Day 3 – The small-margin victories
The third and final day of round one was one for nail-biting finishes as the victorious teams got over the line with the smallest of margins; Uganda beat Namibia by 1 run and Hong Kong China defeated Nepal by 2 runs.
The day started with some showers in Entebbe, that delayed the start of the first game due to a wet outfield that had to dry first before play could start. When the field was fit for play, the first game was cleared to start both teams playing 16 overs as a result of the delay.
Facing Uganda Namibia won the toss and elected to bowl first, limiting Uganda to 71/6 in the allotted 16 overs. Esther Iloku 21 (31), Capt Janet Mbabazi 19 (29) and Rita Musamali 16 (13) showed a better batting display for their team on this occasion compared to the previous games. Namibia’s Eveleen Kejarukua 3/13 caused the most harm to Uganda as teammates Mekelaye Mwatile and Saima Tuhadeleni supported with a wicket each.
With such a fairly low score, it was Namibia’s game to lose, needing only 4-5 runs per over to claim the victory. But well, the Ugandan bowlers had other plans, from the word go they made their intentions clear dismissing openers Sune Wittmann and Kayleen Ann Green early on with single-digit scores like all the other batters with only Yasmeen Khan 15 (21) making a double-digit contribution. With 1 over to go, Namibia at 62/9 needing 10 runs to win from 6 balls, Uganda was in a déjà vu of a sorts and this time death bowler Sarah Walaza was determined to make good on her skill, she bowled a nail-biting over to stop Namibia from getting the required 10 runs and giving Uganda a 1 run victory. Walaza’s bowling efforts were heavily complimented by Sarah Akiteng 5/14, Consy Aweko and Janet Mbabazi with a wicket each.
Final Score: Uganda 71/6 in 16 overs Namibia 70/9 in 16 overs; Uganda won by 1 Run
In the afternoon, the sun was out, the field completely dry and everything was right for a good game of cricket. Nepal won the toss against Hong Kong China and elected to bowl first. An ask Hong Kong China batters took seriously dominating the scoreboard to register the third 100 score in the tournament. As it’s been all tournament, captain Natasha Miles 35 (42) led from the front, followed by Mariko Hill 21 (26 ), Chan Ka Ying 12 (16 ) and Yasmin Daswani 11 (10) not out to bring the score to 100/7. For Nepal, Indu Barma2/15, Ishwori Bist 2/15, Puja Mahato and Rachana Kumari Chaudhary picked the team wickets.
The run chase looked pretty calculated for Nepal who took every opportunity to get runs on the board, taking risky runs, and making some intent power shots; on paper, they had this in the bag.
Barma 32 (33) shouted loud with the bat together with Puja Mahato 19 (28), Bindu Rawal 14 (17), Roma Thapa 13 (12) not out and Sana Praveen 10 (26) coming in handy to chase down the total in the 20 overs. But cricket is cricket, like the previous game, it all came down to the last 6 balls, Nepal at 91/7 needing 10 runs to win, Hong Kong China’s Chan Ka Ying stood up to the challenge, making it difficult for Nepal to cross the line hence leading Hong Kong to a 2-run win. Mariko Hill 2/21, Siu Mei Wai and Chan Ka Ying made strong contributions with the ball.
Final score: Hong Kong China 100/7 Nepal 98/7: Hong Kong China won by 2 runs
Table standing
Uganda and Hongkong China with 2 wins and 1 loss stand at 4 points each with Uganda at the top because of a superior net run rate of 0.2418. Nepal and Namibia with 1 win and 2 losses sit bottom in that order.
Outstanding players thus far
Immaculate Nakisuyi for Uganda who bagged the Woman of Match award against Hong Kong China has put in a good shit for the team both with the ball and the bat; especially against Hong Kong China and Nepal. Her performances have been supported by Janet Mbabazi the captain, Sarah Akiteng though she has played one game so far, Sarah Walaza and former skipper Consy Aweko.
For Hong Kong China, skipper Natasha Miles has led from the front, especially with the bat but her decisions on the ground have also made a difference for the team. Other teammates with decent performances have been Mariko Hill, Chan Ka Ying and Maryam Bibi.
For Namibia, it’s been the Mwatile sisters Mekelaye and Wilka, Kayleen Ann Green, Arrasta Diergaardt, Yasmeen Khan and Suné Wittmann who have shown some good intent with the ball, bat and in the field.
Captain Indu Barma and Puja Mahato have been very good with the ball, okay with the bat and fair in the field for Nepal. With support from Ishwori Bist, Samjhana Kumari Khadka, Riya Sharma and Kabita Joshi the players have been the pillars of their team.
Rest Day
The four teams have a rest day today and will take part in a CSR activity at Kisasi Primary School, where they will play a game of cricket as they introduce the young girls between 10-13 years to the game. The ladies will also share some insights about the game and donate some cricket items to the girls.
Second Round
On Wednesday 12th Mar 2025 the teams will return to action as they start the second of the tournament at the Entebbe Cricket Oval. Nepal will take on Namibia in the morning and Uganda will face Hong Kong China in the afternoon.