As Tanzania and Uganda’s match against each other is finally over, this was one of those rare ones that came down to a last-minute nail-biter, even with a low score put up. Seeing Tanzania were only about to put up 128 runs, they still managed to win by 9 and are officially 2-0 in the qualifiers.
Getting closer to being another team that will make the qualifiers, their last match against Zimbabwe will really show if this side is ready to fight against the big dogs, or if there is still time to beat them. Having a captain like Abhik Patwa never leaves them out of matches and allows this Tanzania side to create upsets on any given afternoon, due to his confidence as the main piece.
For Uganda, this was an absolute match to forget as they might have ruined any chance of making it to the World Cup for a 2nd time in a row. Being absolutely stunned by such a team, this was not expected at all by them, and it really shows how much their team may have gone down due to a few pieces being out of their prime.
Although they had lost their initial match to Zimbabwe, there was no anticipation for them to lose today, as it should have been a match they took care of relatively easily. Looking at it now, there are going to be a lot of questions asked about the standing of Riazat Ali Shah’s captinancy and if he will continue having a leadership position on this side.
Tanzania: Rougher First Innings Was Saved By A Few Key Batsmen
Seeing how Tanzania were batting their first innings, it seemed to express the problems they continued having with batters not gaining consistency at the crease. Arun Yadav did a solid job as an opener by scoring 19 runs on just 19 deliveries, while hitting three total boundaries, and creating a strong 40-run partnership.
With captain Abhik Patwa being opposite of him and scoring 30 during his innings, he managed to stay there after KA Ajith’s wicket too and showed how dangerous he could be during powerplay overs. Scoring 30 on 17 deliveries, he managed to hit two really solid boundaries and 2 massive sixes during these overs, while helping them get to 51/3.
After that, it felt like Mukesh Suthar was carrying the innings with wickets falling right and left of him. With Suthar having scored 45 runs, his innings was very vital to help them past 120 runs and showed that he could stayed at that 140 strike rate for a long time without getting out.
Having hit four combined boundaries, he was really on point even when Tanzania were strangled at 51/4 at one point in just 7.5 overs, while also losing key wickets like Kassim Nassoro plus Salim Jumbe during his innings. Knowing that this side had hit a stage where they were just at 67 runs for 5 wickets when Nassoro got out, the biggest partnership was between Suthar and Jumbe of 30, while the top performer also had a 20+run one with Ally Kimote at the end.
Uganda: Bowlers Were On Fire From Start To Finish In This Innings
Looking at Uganda’s bowling attack, it was clear that their bowlers really built an advantage after relying on pace a lot. With Juma Miyagi bowling three overs today, the fast bowler was able to allow just 21 runs during three overs and kept many major attackers silent with his change-of-pace deliveries.
Left-handed orthodox bowler Alpesh Ramjani showed more of the same as he was able to pick up two wickets during his overs and went for an economy of just 5. Seeing that Ramjani has started gaining a lot of traction for his action recently, he proved how it has become almost unhittable for batsmen who try and improvise their shots by moving around the crease.
Dinesh Nankrani was another key pacer in this match, as his left-handed medium pace really helped him keep that economy low at 4.00, while also nearly getting a couple of wickets. Someone who is known for really swinging the ball as well, it was very vital during the game, and showed that he can make them swing plus miss.
For Henry Ssyendo, this was a huge match to as he finally had a successful 6.25 economy and also got another wicket to build pressure on Tanzania as well. Seeing that Joseph Baguma really rounded the attack well in his two overs and allowed just 9 total runs, it showed the depth at which Uganda could really bowl.
Uganda: Fast Start Got Derailed By Their Middle And Lower Order
In a very heartbreaking innings for this Uganda side, they were able to start their chase pretty fast but got caught in a trap later on to end up losing this match. Opener Raghav Dhawan was a key aspect of the early part with a 39-run knock on 37 balls, while hitting five fours across all parts of the ground. Seeing that he was able to go for sweep shots and try taking bowlers on, one shot eventually landed for six as well.
Creating a opening stand of 23 with Ronald Lutaaya, who carried most of the load with 17 runs, their 2nd partnership between Dhawan and Gaurav Tomar went for over 50 runs. As Tomar added 2 boundaries, he was able to give in a knock of 18 before getting removed.
Being at 80/2, Raghav Dhawan was also removed a little after giving Sumeet Verma and Dinesh Nankrani a chance of finishing this match. What looked like a commendable 20-run combination turned into an absolute mess as both were out within an over of each other. Although captain Riazat Ali Shah had the oppurtunity to change things, he also got out at just two runs while Juma Miyagi went for a clean-duck.
Now that they were 7-down, their only hope was Alpesh Ramjani, who ended up quickly getting out in 6 balls for just two runs, and Cosmos Kyewuta couldn’t do much under pressure since they still had around 15 runs left with 5 balls. Although he stayed in throughout, he wasn’t able to go big, and Uganda ended up losing by 9 runs.
Tanzania: Bowling Attack Woke Up After A Very Slow Start To This Match
For Tanzania, their bowlers really showed up big-time after a very slow batting innings on their end and were able to avoid a run chase. Although Ally Kimote had an 8.50 economy throughout his four overs, this star was able to remove two big-time batsmen and make a huge difference in the match.
When talking about big differences, though, the biggest name goes to Khalidy Amiri Juma, who took four wickets during his four overs and just gave up 13 runs during that period. Taking out most of the middle and lower-order, he was able to swing this match completely in Tanzania’s favor, while KA Ajith got two wickets, alongside Sivaraj Selvraj picking up one.
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