After having one of the greatest performances during their qualifier stage prior to last tournament, Uganda are back at it again and hoping to make even more noise. A group that made the T20I World Cup for the very first time in their nation’s history during 2024, a lot will be expected of them once again as they continue developing themselves into more of a cricketing nation.
As Uganda did knock out Zimbabwe in their last African qualifier, this side was also able to create a massive upset against UAE by 8 runs just a couple months back. With them formerly being known as part of East Africa back in the day during cricket tournaments, Uganda’s unit has definitely been able to climb up in a big way after becoming an associate member during 1998.
Head coach Abhay Sharma, who used to formerly coach India’s under-19 side during 2018, has been a huge addition for them as he understands what it takes for winning in big moments and should help develop a lot of these players. Being a vital part of their recent success, his hiring during April 23rd, 2024, looks like one that couldn’t be missed now and has been a massive savior to this side, where cricket was not as popular at first. With Uganda trying to grow the sport in their nation, a lot of it comes down to how their performance is once again, and if captain Riazat Ali Shah can provide leadership that he’s shown throughout his already great career.
Strengths: Batting Experience Will Mean A Lot For This Side
Looking at Uganda’s side, they have a ton of batsmen who have played at high levels before and should continue bringing that to this side. Former IPL player Shrideep Mangela has already gotten off to a fast start up top with 361 runs during 16 innings and continues playing some eloquent shots that end up in boundaries. Hitting some vital half-centuries already, having someone like this from the left end will open up room for right-handed star Robinson Obuya, whose scored 763 runs during his young career. As a 24-year-old who has already smashed 5 half-centuries, his ability to mix up fours and sixes has been key since this piece has already delivered 34 top-class maximums within 40 matches.
In the middle, Raghav Dhawan has been another key piece who formerly came from the Himachal Pradesh domestic team and continues building on his career ever since leaving them. Having recently put together a 56-run knock, this is someone who averages over 23 runs in T20Is, while playing very key innings before their two biggest pieces in Alpesh Ramjani and Dinesh Nakrani come in.
As Alpesh Ramjani & Dinesh Nakrani have a consistent ability of scoring 25+ runs each match, they really extend the score, while playing with class and hitting big shots around the ground. With captain Riazat Ali Shah, 32.3 average and over 1,400 runs, being a very strong piece who can come in at any time, while also putting Cyrus Kakuru in different positions to succeed.
Weaknesses: Despite Recent Successes, Top-Order Gets A Little Off Track
As Uganda have possessed one of the deepest batting attacks across Africa, their one main problem is their consistency up top except for Shrideep Mangela and Robinson Obuya. Although Raghav Dhawan has shown a lot of recent prowess at one-down, he is still very new and hasn’t yet faced that many elite bowling attacks, while struggling against ones he has already gone up against.
Knowing that, their two-down position also continues to be a massive issue because it always seems like their top-notch middle-order batsmen come in much earlier than needed. As Gaurav Tomar could be a potential option for that position, he has batted at an 8.71 average during T20Is and still failed to develop any score higher than 25.
Someone who’s not shown a boundary-hitting ability either, his 91.04 strike rate speaks for itself, as it seems that whenever he is in, the Uganda run-rate goes down before the remaining order saves it for them. Another piece in Sumeet Verma also hasn’t played a match for Uganda yet, but given his recent performance in T20Is domestically, this is someone who will be stuck around a 15 to 16 average.
A position they need to figure out fast as a bridge from the top to middle order, this could be a huge weakness because Ronald Lutaaya has also not been selected for the squad after his own recent struggles, where they tried moving him around but couldn’t light up any fireworks.
Opportunities: Bowling Attack Can Really Create Havoc Against Most Sides
This group in Uganda has a lot of potential to show why their bowling attack is lethal and can go head-to-head with any team, no matter the situation. Left-handed spinner Henry Ssenyondo, 118 wickets during just 90 T20Is, has slowly become their most key bowler as he took a 4-wicket haul against Singapore recently and really knows how to turn deliveries left or right.
Someone who keeps developing himself into an elite-level talent, Juma Miyagi has already shown what he can do as a right-handed pacer. Being just 22 and already playing 39 matches in his short career, he’s delivered 54 wickets and managed to keep the economy near 6.00, while also coming up big against sides like UAE.
45-year-old Frank Nsubuga still has got some amazing fire left in him as his right arm off-break abilities have already helped him pick up over 70 wickets during the last 6 years. Known for really mixing up deliveries and not attacking with a similar style each time, it has confused batsmen and not let them take him on very easily.
An option that has kept Frank Nsubga economy well under 5, another piece that has an opportunity to make his name is Cosmas Kyewuta, who’s already developed a name for himself in death overs. With 4 four-wicket hauls during his young career, having Dinesh Nakrani and Alpesh Ramjani being potential limited-over options should really help this side have more options to wreak havoc.
Threats: Their Group Is Full Of Hungry Teams
The thing with Uganda is, their whole group during these qualifiers have other sides that have continued development as well, or are already far stronger than them. With the emergence of Botswana, a side that has made its mark over the last 6 months, they will give Uganda a run for their money, while Tanzania has become more formidable than ever.
Given that those are four of their six matches, it will be must-wins because their other two against Zimbabwe will be extremely tough. Although Uganda managed to beat them in 2024, this is a different Chevrons unit and looks much stronger than the current Uganda squad, so it will take an absolutely fantastic effort from Uganda to even win one against them.
Uganda Squad: Dinesh Nakrani, Alpesh Ramjani, Robinson Obuya, Gaurav Tomar, Cosmas Kyewuta, Henry Ssenyondo, Juma Miyagi, Frank Nsbuga, Shrideep Mangela, Sumeet Verma, Riazat Ali Shah, Cyrus Kakuru, Frank Nsubuga, Joseph Baguma, Innocent Mwebaze
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