Africa-Press – Namibia. Namibia’s national women’s cricket team, the Capricorn Eagles, leaves for Thailand this week to compete in the inaugural ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy.
The tournament which will be held in Bangkok from 18 November to 1 December, is designed to accelerate the growth of women’s cricket amongst emerging nations and will see Namibia competing against seven other Associate Member nations. They comprise of five teams that have ODI (One Day International) status, namely the Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, Scotland, Thailand and the UAE; as well as two African nations, namely Tanzania and Uganda.
The competing sides make up the top performing women’s sides just outside the ICC’s full member nations, with their T20 world rankings ranging from
11 for Thailand to 19 for Tanzania.
Scotland is ranked 12th, Papua New Guinea 13th, the Netherlands 15th, UAE 16th, Namibia 17th and Uganda 18th.
The tournament will also serve as much needed preparation for the Capricorn Eagles who are still in the running to qualify for next year’s T20 World Cup.
In September, Namibia finished as runners-up to Zimbabwe in the African World Cup qualifier, with both teams booking their places in the final T20 World Cup Qualifier which will be held in January next year.
At a farewell ceremony on Monday, the CEO of Cricket Namibia, Johan Muller, thanked Capricorn for their steadfast support of women’s cricket in Namibia.
“Cricket Namibia is truly grateful for Capricorn’s support, which is essential in helping us reach greater heights. As official partners of our women’s team, they have allowed us to prioritise and develop the women’s game.”
Mariantha Fryer of Capricorn said they are committed to supporting the Capricorn Eagles.
“We are immensely proud of the Capricorn Eagles’ remarkable progress under Cricket Namibia’s guidance. We are committed to our community, believing that today’s investments will benefit Namibian girls and women in the years to come. Alongside Capricorn Asset Management and Capricorn Private Weath, we support this team, recognising the power of sport to create positive change for women and girls in Namibia,” she said.
According to a press release issued by Cricket Namibia, the tournament aims to support the development of these teams on the international stage.
“The tournament is designed to provide consistent, high quality competition and a pathway for players and teams seeking to make their mark on the international stage. For participating teams, the event presents an invaluable opportunity to build competitive depth, foster talent, and showcase emergiong stars from across the Associate cricket world,” it said.
The Namibian squad is as folows:
Sune Wittmann (captain), Yasmeen Khan, Kayleen Green, Edelle van Zyl, Wilka Mwatile, Mekelatye Mwatile, Arrasta Diergaardt, Mezerly Gorases, Sylvia Shihepo, Bianca Manuel, Naomi Benjamin, Leigh-Marie Visser, Eveleen Kejarukua, Victoria Hamunyela.
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