Arinaitwe to lead cricket team

Jun 27, 2011

Davis Arinaitwe has been tasked to revive Uganda’s cricket hopes on the international scene.

By Joseph Kizza

Davis Arinaitwe has been tasked to revive Uganda’s cricket hopes on the international scene.

The 24-year old player takes charge as team captain after Akbar Baig was dropped from the 14-man squad that will represent Uganda at the Pepsi ICC Africa Division I Championship hosted by Uganda in Kampala.

Arinaitwe, whose career started in 2004, will lead an ever-improving Ugandan side against a full-force African resistance of Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria and Ghana.

Previously the vice-captain, Arinaitwe’s vast experience in the sport will be key in ensuring that the Ugandan team puts to good use its home advantage over the visitors.

He played in the 2004 U-19 Cricket World Cup in Bangladesh and in a similar high-profile tournament in 2006 in Sri Lanka.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Council of Sports Justin Ligyalingi announced the selected team members before journalists and well-wishers Monday morning at the headquarters at Lugogo.

Ligyalingi revealed that the top two teams at the end of the tournament will each earn a place in the Global T20 World Cup Qualifiers due in February next year in Dubai.

Uganda was selected by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to host the tournament set to start on the 9th and end on the 15th of July. Lugogo and Kyambogo Cricket Ovals will host the games.

Gaining a top-two slot in the Kampala tournament will not come easy for the Ugandan side, especially with opposition from Kenya and Nigeria, who are expected to fly in a week before the tournament starts.

The West African side beat Tanzania to emerge as the Africa T20 Division II winners last month. Ghana finished in second after thumping Botswana by 54 runs.

The last time Namibia and Uganda faced off against each other was during the World Cricket League Division II tournament in Dubai two months ago. Namibia beat a relegation-threatened Ugandan team by 205 runs.

The National Cricket team coach Martin Suji said that the selected squad members have for weeks been engaged in training drills to avoid mistakes learnt from the previous tournament two months ago.

“The individual performance of the players has improved over the past three months,” Suji stated.

Henry Okecho, the team manager also pointed out that the team will play warm-up games ahead of the tournament.

“There will be warm-up games with Nigeria and Kenya this weekend and the next, “said Okecho, adding that Kenya will jet into the country on the same day as Nigeria.

The squad: Davis Arinaitwe (Captain), Frank Nsubuga (Vice Captain), Laurence Sematimba, Brian Masaba, Ivan Thawithemwira, Abdullah Lubega, Ronald Ssemanda, Deusdedit Muhumuza, Arthur Kyobe, Charles Waiswa, Roger Mukasa, Benjamin Musoke, Arthur Ziraba, Henry Senyondo.

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