Kilimeru SC cricketers bounced back in the Tigo Trophy tournament with a comfortable 60-run win over Arusha TCA Development in a group A match played at the TGT venue in the region on Sunday.
Arusha Regional Cricket Committee (ARCC) has organized the tournament under sponsorship from Tigo in a bid to support efforts by the Tanzania Cricket Association (TCA) to promote the sport in the country.
The difference in the level of experience, once again, came about in the game, in which the winners fully deployed their experience to silence the youthful, inexperienced Arusha TCA Development squad. Kilimeru SC started to bat in the match and recorded 146 runs for the loss of eight wickets in the allotted 20 overs, a total that proved the team somewhat struggled with the bat at some point.
Arusha TCA Development bowlers troubled Kilimeru batsmen a lot in the innings and the former could have exhausted all of their opponents’ batsmen had they stepped up performance. One Erick, Wilbert and Zakayo took two wickets apiece in their respective bowling spells and the Kilimeru SC’s remaining batsmen had to deploy all skills at their disposal and virtually hang on for the rest of the innings.
In response, the Arusha TCA Development youngsters’ efforts to mount a successful chase failed to reach fruition as they managed 86 runs for the loss of four wickets in the allotted 20 overs. A couple of the team’s dependable batsmen had a good day with the bat but they could not do much to help their team avoid a second consecutive defeat in the campaign.
Zakayo displayed his improvement in the batting department as well after notching unbeaten 28 runs to prove Arusha TCA Development could as well showcase resilience, albeit not in the expected level.
Arusha TCA Development team, made up of youngsters that were groomed in the junior development programme involving the region’s primary and secondary schools, is making its maiden appearance in the tournament hoping to garner experience and contribute to the sport’s development.
The team suffered a 176-run defeat at the hands of A To Z Club in the group’s opening match played at the latter’s venue a fortnight ago. Several more matches in both group A and B were expected to take place at the two venues of TGT and Olyset the same weekend.
By JAPHETH KAZENGA, Tanzania Daily News
