Brief History of Namibia Women’s National Cricket Team
The Namibian women’s national cricket team, nicknamed the Capricorn Eagles, represents Namibia in international women’s cricket. The team is managed by Cricket Namibia, which has been a member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1992.
Historical Highlights – Namibia Women’s National Cricket Team
Namibia made its international debut at the 2004 Africa Women’s Cricket Tournament in Tanzania but failed to secure a win. The team did not compete in another Africa-wide tournament until the 2011 ICC Africa Women’s T20 Tournament in Uganda. Since then, Namibia has regularly competed in ICC Africa competitions and regional tournaments against other southern African teams. They have also participated in South African provincial competitions in the past.
In April 2018, the ICC granted full Women’s Twenty20 International (WT20I) status to all its members. Consequently, all WT20I matches played by Namibia since 1 July 2018 have been recognized as WT20Is and they debuted against Malawi at Botswana Cricket Association Oval 2, Gaborone on 20 August 2018.
In March 2024, Cricket Namibia awarded professional contracts to 10 members of the women’s team. This initiative made Cricket Namibia the first sporting body in the country to award central contracts to both men and women.
Tournament Highlights – Namibia Women’s National Cricket Team
1. Botswana 7s Tournament (August 2018):
Namibia played against Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, and Zambia, where they topped the table, winning all five group-stage matches. They won the final against Sierra Leone by nine wickets.
2. 2019 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier:
Namibia reached the final but lost to Zimbabwe by 50 runs. However, following the suspension of Zimbabwe Cricket by the ICC in July 2019, Namibia replaced Zimbabwe in the 2019 ICC Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier tournament. The team finished 8th in the 2019 ICC Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier, failing to qualify for the World Cup.
3. 2021 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier:
Namibia topped Group B and advanced to the semi-final, where they won against Tanzania by 2 wickets. In the final, they faced Zimbabwe, losing by 13 runs, and failing to qualify for the World Cup.
4. Kwibuka Women’s T20 Tournament 2021:
Namibia won all their matches in the round-robin stage, finishing at the top of the points table with 8 points, thereby securing a place in the playoffs. In the semi-final, they defeated Nigeria by 91 runs, setting up a final against Kenya. Despite their dominant performances throughout the tournament, they faced a setback in the final, losing to Kenya by 7 wickets and finishing as the runners-up of the tournament.
5. 2023 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier:
In Division Two, Namibia was placed in Group B and only losing to Uganda, finished second, advancing to playoffs where Namibia lost to Zimbabwe in the semi-final. The third-place match against Tanzania was abandoned due to rain.