NAIROBI, April 29 (Xinhua) -- Kenya women's cricket team will seek to win their first major international tournament when they compete in the ICC Africa Twenty20 International in Harare, Zimbabwe from May 5 to 12.
The tournament will feature nine teams, namely Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, champions Uganda and Zimbabwe.
The nine teams will compete for the single slot available for Africa in the 2019 ICC Women's World Twenty20 qualifiers in Scotland from August 31 to September 7.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced after the conclusion of their Board and Technical Committee meetings held in Singapore last October that the 2019 regional qualifiers would determine the pathway towards the global qualifiers for both T20 and 50-over World Cups.
Team captain Daisy Wairimu said Kenya were well prepared for the trip to Zimbabwe, and hope they will weather the storm to challenge for the title.
"The team is ready, despite the challenges we face over cricket management. But we will give a good account of ourselves in the tournament," Wairimu said on Monday in Nairobi.
Wairimu is back training with the team after surviving a road accident back in 2017.
The team departs for Zimbabwe on Friday.
Uganda represented Africa in last year's Twenty20 global qualifiers, after edging out Zimbabwe in a closely-contested event in Namibia.
The top two teams from the 2019 ICC Women's World Twenty20 qualifiers will play in the 2020 ICC Women's Twenty20 World Cup in Australia from February 21 to March 8.
The Kenyan team will miss the services of experienced all-rounder Sarah Bhatika, who sprained her right ankle during training at Ruaraka Sports Club on Wednesday.
Bhatika's place in the squad will be taken by Nakuru-based Ruth Achando, a middle-order right hand batsman who is also a wicketkeeper.
Namibia staged the last edition of the ICC Women Twenty20 World Cup Africa Qualifiers in 2017. Enditem
