Junior Yellow Greens strength World Cup ticket push

Nigeria's Junior Yellow Greens have bolstered their chances of returning to Division One of the ICC U-19 Men's Cricket World Cup pathway following a commanding seven-wicket win against hosts Rwanda. The victory, achieved in their third match of the ongoing Division 2 qualifiers at the Gahanga Main Oval in Kigali, showcased a disciplined all-round performance from the Nigerian team.

Nigeria's bowlers were instrumental in restricting Rwanda to a mere 79 runs in 23.1 overs. Emmanuel Oladejo delivered an outstanding spell, taking 3 wickets for 9 runs in five overs, including two maidens. Abdullahi Ismail also contributed significantly with three wickets for 19 runs from seven overs, while Keneth Boniface claimed three wickets for 22 runs in six overs, including two maidens. Despite the impressive bowling, captain Ali Rahmon noted that the team could have been more disciplined, citing a high number of extras in the early overs.

Chasing a modest target of 80 runs, the Junior Yellow Greens established a strong foundation with a crucial 46-run opening partnership between captain Ali Rahmon and Hossana Omonkhobhio. Rahmon scored 24 runs off 38 balls, and Omonkhobhio added 18 runs from 19 deliveries. This solid start allowed Nigeria to control the chase and remain ahead of the required run rate. Peculiar Egemasi continued the momentum with an unbeaten 19, and Boniface sealed the victory with an unbeaten 7, including a six, in just 15.2 overs. Boniface's all-round performance earned him the Player of the Match award.

With this victory, the Junior Yellow Greens are third on the log with four points and a 1.531 net run rate, with two remaining matches against Mozambique U-19 and Sierra Leone U-19. The team's performance keeps them firmly in contention for promotion to the next division.

“

We did a very good job restricting them to 80 runs all out, but I feel we should have done a bit better because we bowled a lot of extras in the first 10 overs. Maybe 60 or 50 runs would have been good.