Uganda Clinches Historic First T20 World Cup Win

Victory Secured

Uganda secured a historic first T20 World Cup victory by defeating Papua New Guinea by 3 wickets. Frank Nsubuga, Uganda’s longest-serving and oldest player at the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, made history. He became the most economical bowler in T20 World Cup history as Uganda triumphed over Papua New Guinea.

Match Background

Heading into their second Group C match, both teams had never won a game in this competition. Uganda, debuting, emerged victorious.

Uganda’s Flawless Start

Winning the toss again, Uganda chose to bowl first. Alpesh Ramjani opened the bowling and gave Uganda a flawless start.

PNG captain Assad Vala and Sese Bau hoped to replicate their 2022 victory over Uganda. However, disaster struck. Vala was dismissed lbw on the second delivery, starting with a wicket maiden.

Early Wickets for Uganda

Pacer Juma Miyaji, playing his first senior World Cup match, took the crease for the third over. After a no-ball start, Bau was caught by Roger Mukasa. Cosmas Kyewuta joined the mix in the fourth over, dismissing Tony Ura with another catch by Mukasa.

PNG’s brief respite ended with a run-out of Lega Siaka, initiated by Kyewuta and completed by Simon Ssesazi.

Nsubuga’s Historic Spell

Captain Brian Masaba introduced spin in the seventh over, bringing Nsubuga into the attack. Nsubuga’s first over yielded just two runs. His next two overs were wicket maidens. He set a record for the most economical spell at 2/4, an economy rate of 1.00.

After Nsubuga dismissed Hiri Hiri, PNG’s top scorer with 15, Uganda quickly cleared the tail. Ramjani, Masaba, Miyaji, and Kyewuta each took a wicket in the final overs. Kyewuta closed the innings, dismissing Norman Vanua. PNG was all out for 77.

Uganda’s Chase

Chasing 78, Uganda’s batting struggled initially. Mukasa, Ssesazi, and Obuya were dismissed early, leaving Uganda at 6/3.

Key Partnership

Dinesh Nakrani and Ramjani fell, reducing Uganda to 25/5 in the seventh over. Riazat Ali Shah and Miyaji formed an unlikely but crucial partnership. Coach Abhay Sharma tactically introduced Miyaji, a bowler, to stabilize the innings.

Miyaji and Riazat rotated the strike effectively. Riazat, dropped at 10, scored 33 off 56, earning the Player of the Match award. Miyaji was run out after scoring 13, with the pair adding 36 runs together.

Sealing the Win

Kenneth Waiswa and Masaba finished the innings. Waiswa swept the ball to fine leg for the winning runs.

Looking Ahead

This hard-fought victory is historic and boosts Uganda’s momentum for their next match against co-hosts West Indies on 8th, Saturday.