Brief History of Tanzania Women’s National Cricket Team
The Tanzanian women’s cricket team represents Tanzania in international women’s cricket.
Historical Highlights – Tanzania Women’s National Cricket Team
Organized women’s cricket in Tanzania began in 1999 when the Tanzania Cricket Association (TCA) introduced “chanzo cricket” for girls in primary schools. A national under-15 team was created in 2002 for a regional tournament. The development of the sport has been hindered by social taboos against women’s participation in sports, especially for those with children.
The TCA hosted the inaugural African women’s cricket championships in 2004, with limited involvement from the International Women’s Cricket Council (IWCC). The national team was unbeaten, defeating Uganda, Kenya, and Namibia in the round-robin format and winning the final against Uganda by eight wickets.
In March 2018, Tanzania was invited to participate in the 2018 ASEAN Women’s T20 Open Tournament as a guest team, finishing as runner-up to the hosts Thailand.
In April 2018, the International Cricket Council (ICC) granted full Women’s Twenty20 International (WT20I) status to all its members. Therefore, all Twenty20 matches played between Tanzania women and other international sides since 1 July 2018 have had WT20I status.
In December 2020, the ICC announced the qualification pathway for the 2023 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. Tanzania was named in the 2021 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Regional Qualifier, alongside ten other teams.
Tanzanian batter Fatuma Kibasu scored her second T20I century in September 2021, an innings of 127 not out from 66 balls against Eswatini in the 2021 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier, becoming only the fifth woman and the first from an ICC associate member team to score multiple T20I centuries.
Tournament Highlights – Tanzania Women’s National Cricket Team
2019 Kwibuka Women’s T20 Tournament:
Tanzania won both their matches against Uganda, Rwanda, and Mali each in a double round-robin system, winning the title of champions.
2019 ICC Women’s Qualifier Africa:
Placed in Group A against host Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Nigeria, and Mozambique, they lost only to Zimbabwe but were eventually eliminated as only the table toppers could qualify.
2021 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier:
Tanzania, placed in group A, was placed alongside five other teams, losing only to Zimbabwe. They finished second in the group stage and advanced to the semifinals, where they lost to Namibia by two wickets. However, they beat Uganda by nine wickets in the third-place play-off match to secure the third position.
2023 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Africa Qualifier:
The finalists in Division Two advanced to Division One, which featured six teams. Tanzania, being one of the six teams, was placed in group A alongside Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Botswana. They lost only to Zimbabwe, finishing second in the table and advancing to the playoffs. Losing to Uganda, they had to play third place playoffs against Namibia, which couldn’t happen due to rain.
2024 Nigeria Invitational Women’s T20I Tournament:
Tanzania won their opening game against Rwanda and their remaining games, taking the top position on the points table. They handed Sierra Leone a heavy 92-run defeat to secure the title.