The sixth edition of Kwibuka Women’s T20 Tournament was held from 18 June to 23 June in Rwanda. The matches played qualified as international matches for the first time. The tournament was played among four African teams Tanzania, Mali, Rwanda and Uganda where each team played six matches.
Tanzania Women finished at the top of the table after winning all the six matches they played. Tanzania and Mali Women were playing the Kwibuka tournament for the first time while the most successful team in this space, Kenya that has won three out of the five previous editions had to miss playing this year due to dearth of funding. As the word ‘Kwibuka’ means ‘remembrance’ in Kinyarwanda language, the 2019 edition of the Kwibuka will be remembered for so many records broken in this six-day tournament.
The records that were broken during the tournament:
1. The record of the highest total in a Women’s T20 match was held by England as they scored 250-3 against South Africa Women, a year back. Now the record of the highest total is with Uganda Women after they scored 314-2 against Mali women. This is now the highest score by any team in an International T20 match, men or women.
2. The record of highest run partnership in a Women’s T20I is with Rita Musamali and Prosscovia Alako of Uganda. They partnered for 227 runs. The record was previously held by Suzie Bates and Sophie Devine.
3. The margin of victory of 304 runs for Uganda against Mali is the biggest margin victory in T20 cricket.
4. Skipper Rita Musamali and Opener Prosscovia Alako made a new record when they scored centuries for Uganda in a single match. No two players had scored a century in the same innings before in a T20 match.
5. The six runs scored by Mali Women against Rwanda is the lowest total in the International T20 cricket.
6. Mali’s Oumou Sow giving away 82 runs in 3 overs is the most expensive spell in Women’s cricket.
7. Mali has the record of three lowest total in Women’s T20 cricket of 6, 11, 10 runs that too on the three consecutive days.
Tanzania women remained unbeatable in the six matches they played. The most consistent batters for the champion team were Fatuma Kibasu and Monica Pascal. While Monica Pascal started the tournament by scoring a half-century and leading her team to a 5 run win against Uganda, Fatuma Kibasu became the first woman cricketer to score a century for Tanzania as she smashed 108 runs in 71 balls.
For the bowling side, Tabu Omary took the charge. Rwanda Women also displayed their finest of cricket. Marie Diane Bimenyimana remained the most successful player in the tournament with both, the bat and the ball. She also became the first woman for Rwanda to score a century after scoring 114 runs against Mali Women and was declared Player of the Series. Uganda Women started the series with a defeat from Tanzania Women but ended up being the second most successful team of the 2019 edition of the tournament. Musamali and Alako scored centuries for Uganda in the same match. Joyce Apio and Evelyn Anyipo contributed with the bowl. Mali women were playing the tournament for the first time. The novice team will surely take back home some lessons to come back stronger the next year.