RWANDA Women may have fallen six runs short against Uganda, but head coach Leonard Nhamburo believes the performance showed his side can compete with the continent’s leading teams.
Rather than pointing to a single turning point, Nhamburo said the result came down to a few key passages of play that gradually tilted the match in Uganda’s favour.
“We lost by six runs, but the game was decided in three small moments, not one big moment,” Nhamburo told Cricket Africa.
The first, he said, came during the powerplay. Chasing 100, Rwanda reached 29 for one after six overs, a start that kept them in the contest but did not fully capitalize on the situation.
“When you are chasing a target like that, the powerplay sets the tone. We got through it with wickets in hand, but we could have put a bit more pressure on their bowlers,” the Rwanda coach said.
The defining phase arrived later in the chase.
Rwanda needed 22 runs from the final 18 deliveries with four wickets in hand and looked well placed to push for victory. However, they managed only nine runs in the next two overs and lost a set batter while trying to accelerate against Consylate Aweko.
“We lost a batter trying to force a boundary against Consylate Aweko’s variations,” Nhamburo said.
“That was the phase where the game started slipping away.”
Even so, Rwanda entered the final over needing 11 runs.
Uganda held their nerve, restricting the scoring and preventing the boundary Rwanda desperately needed.
“Credit to Uganda. They executed under pressure and made us work for every run. In that situation you need somebody to take charge of the chase and see it through,” he said.
Despite the defeat, the coach was encouraged by the resilience shown by his batters.
The middle order kept Rwanda in the chase and ensured the game was still alive heading into the final six deliveries.
“Last year, we would probably have lost wickets in a cluster and fallen well short,” Nhamburo said.
“This time we stayed in the game and gave ourselves a chance right to the end.”
Nhamburo believes the next step for his batting unit is converting starts into match-winning contributions.
Several players got into double figures, but none were able to push on and anchor the chase.
“We had five batters score between 10 and 18 runs. That’s not a bad sign because people are getting in, but one of those innings has to become 30 or 40,” the head coach said.
“The same applies to partnerships. We had a few good stands, but we need one partnership that takes control of the chase.”
While there was disappointment with the result, Nhamburo had plenty of praise for his bowlers.
Rwanda restricted the defending champions to 99 for six, a performance he described as one of the team’s most disciplined displays against Uganda in recent years.
“To keep the defending champions to 99 on their own ground is an outstanding effort,” he said.
The groundwork was laid in the powerplay, where Uganda were held to 29 for two after six overs. Rwanda’s spinners then tightened their grip through the middle overs, conceding only 34 runs from eight overs and forcing Uganda’s batters to take risks.
The death bowling also impressed the coach, with Rwanda conceding just 14 runs in the final three overs while claiming two wickets.
“In previous games that phase has hurt us. This time we stayed disciplined and stuck to our plans,” Nhamburo said.
Looking ahead, he wants his players to focus on the lessons from the match rather than the result itself.
“To lose by six runs after restricting Uganda to 99 shows we’re not far away,” the Rwanda coach said.
The immediate priorities are improving the team’s intent during the powerplay and handling pressure better in the closing stages of a chase.
“We’re talking about small margins,” Nhamburo said.
“One better powerplay, one partnership that goes a little further, and it’s a completely different result.”
